Vidēre [Latin] verb - to see

Transcription

1 Vidēre [Latin] verb - to see 116 Local business owners vetted 78 Business professionals sent 72 Entrepreneurs funded 35+ Villages impacted Videre fights physical and spiritual poverty by providing business training, Christian discipleship and microfunding to empower local entrepreneurs in developing markets.

2 VIDERE S LOAN PORTFOLIO: ANNAS ATTA TAILOR IN GHANA Annas is a tailor in the small village of DC Kura. He sews men s clothing out of his shop along a main road. Before Videre s program, Annas had to travel daily by bicycle to a nearby town to outsource the finishing stitches for trousers. With his loan, Annas bought his own finishing machine, which not only saved time and money, but also generated income as other tailors in the area asked for his service. Now Annas gets on his bicycle only to provide customized, door-to-door service for his clients. To give back to the community, Annas offers an apprenticeship to unemployed young men without the usual training fee. Photography Cosmetics store Shea butter production Cattle brokerage Fish, Okra and Pepper sales Grains transportation Seamstress & Tailor shops Mobile & stationary pharmacies Provisions stores Mini-restaurants & eateries Rice processing Hairdressing Retail clothing Peanut processing Electrical parts & services Fried & raw pork sales Fabric & sandal sales Sewing accessories shop Medical Creams & Insecticides Coca-Cola & Soft Drinks Sales Soap, Salt & Kerosene Sales Petro & Diesel Retail Charcoal Sales

3 THE MICRO-VETTING APPROACH Videre believes that loans are most effective when they are given to those who demonstrate business acumen and provide viable business plans. Conversely, loans should not be given to the poor who fail to demonstrate these capabilities; such loans would cause more harm than good. This principle is central to our model for equipping the poor. Research and our own field experience have shown that only 10-15% of people have an entrepreneurial predisposition, largely independent of education or literacy. Videre looks to discover and equip individuals with this entrepreneurial bent so that loans can be directed towards those who can most successfully build profitable businesses and create jobs for others in their communities. PHASE 1: PHASE 2: PHASE 3: FUNDING BUSINESS FUNDAMENTALS BUSINESS PLAN GROWTH STRATEGY AND TRAINING DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT IMPLEMENTATION Videre s micro-vetting process is a three-phase program that screens for potential entrepreneurs for funding. Videre brings business professionals to Ghana to train candidates in each Phase. Each Phase also has a specific vetting element to determine which candidates move on to the next Phase. Candidates enter Phase I only through the recommendation of our local partner. Candidates enter Phase II when they show thorough market research necessary to create a business plan. Candidates enter Phase III when their business plans show financial viability and a strategy for community impact. Only after Phase III do those who graduate the program get funding.

4 CULTIVATING SOCIAL AND SPIRITUAL CHANGE AGENTS The mission of Videre s program is not only to help individuals escape physical poverty, but also to have a social and spiritual impact on communities. Videre cultivates the mindset that the purpose of business goes beyond simply providing for one s own needs; businesses provide opportunities to exhibit the love of Jesus Christ and impact society for good. Therefore, all of Videre s entrepreneurs develop practical strategies to give back to their communities in an intentional way. This essential part of their business plan called the Kingdom Impact Strategy is necessary to obtain funding. An example of this is Miriam Joshua, a fabric seller. Every morning, Miriam walks around the market with a basin on her head full of colorful fabrics to sell. She then contributes some of her profits to support an adult literacy program, in which her husband is a teacher. In their surrounding communities, 90% of people are illiterate. Because villagers farm during the day, they learn to read at night by the light of a kerosene lamp.

5 Videre brings teams of business professionals to Ghana to teach the three Phases of our program. These business training volunteers lend their time, skills and finances to the field to help equip local entrepreneurs. ROBERT PRATHER PRESIDENT OF EQUITY RESEARCH FIRM Robert Prather is the President of Vision Research, LLC, based out of Dallas, Texas. Vision provides short-biased independent equity research on small and mid-cap companies. Robert and his wife Jennifer came on the Phase I business training trip to Ghana in December 2010, their first time to Africa. Robert then decided to go back with Videre in January 2011 for Phase II training. Robert says, One reason I went back is that I really enjoyed using my business skills for God s glory and wanted to help finish what we had started with the training. Meeting Ghanaian business professionals was much different than I imagined. Most of them were much smarter business persons than I would have thought, and they showed such a strong desire to give back to their communities and love others through their businesses. That s the way it s supposed to be!

6 THE FREEDOM OF A LOAN PHYSICALLY For the poor, a loan can be an invitation out of physical poverty. It gives an opportunity to generate income to feed mouths, install a dry tin roof overhead, buy medicine and pay school fees to educate the next generation. LASTING IMPACT Because the heart of Videre s mission is to create profitable businesses with social and spiritual impact, we track success through loan repayments as well as by the holistic impact each business has on individuals, families and communities. Here is a snapshot of Videre s influence since its inception in Ghana in 2010: 116 local business owners vetted, 4 classes graduated, 72 entrepreneurs funded 78 business professionals sent to provide coaching onsite 365 immediate family members of Videre entrepreneurs impacted 35+ villages influenced by Kingdom Impact Strategies for social and spiritual change Over $18,000 in loan repayments reinvested into new entrepreneurs Class I and II: 97% and 100% principal repaid respectively; Class III and IV repayment in progress MENTALLY For the entrepreneur, a loan means freedom from creative and mental poverty. It means having the resources to turn an idea into reality by creating an excellent product or service that would bring value to society. SPIRITUALLY A loan gives freedom to claim and proclaim human dignity by loving and serving others. It means entrepreneurs are able to give back to their neighbors and communities in a way that reflects the selfless love of Jesus Christ.

7 We decided to partner with Videre because we saw that both sides have a common vision for addressing spiritual and physical needs for the purpose of reaching the unreached. We also saw an opportunity to empower believers to become selfsustaining, so that they can contribute back to their communities. LOCAL PARTNERSHIP - Abukari Yakubu, BCA Pastor Videre s local partner is Bible Church of Africa (BCA), established in 1978 as a result of missionary work in northern Ghana. Today there are more than 30 BCA churches in the Yendi region where Videre works, located in some of the most remote and rural communities in the country. Each community church has membership ranging from 10 to 50 people, and the congregations are actively involved in community development through an adult literacy program, a goats project (breeding to support education) and Home of Hope, a hostel in Tamale for secondary school students from poor families. When Videre first met BCA, we had a united vision to add a business development component to their discipleship process. Videre works closely with BCA pastors who provide cultural and spiritual guidance to our program. Because the pastors are always involved in the decision-making process of the program, they are deeply motivated to provide accountability to our entrepreneurs.