The results are in! We’ve finished going through the evaluation surveys from the first class of The Global Entrepreneur Academy participants and we are so excited by what we read!

These amazing entrepreneurs are a dynamic group of businesspeople making a huge impact on the community. From Kibera (second-largest slum in Africa) to Korogocho, their businesses and organizations provide essential services to about 1800 people per month, improving lives through:

• Microfinance
• Income-generating activities
• Primary school education
• Education for deaf children
• Computer classes
• Vocational training
• Nutrition
• Training of community health workers
• Caring for orphans, widows and those affected by HIV/AIDS

Together, these community-based organizations also profit roughly $4500 USD/year (a vast sum, given that the average yearly income in Kenya is only $1500), which flows directly back to the community in the form of employee salaries and consumer spending. The graduates of The GEA are dedicated to their community, and provide jobs for 119 people, more than half of whom are women.

The GEA is designed is to provide vital education and support, so these budding entrepreneurs can continue and expand their life-changing work. And clearly, it’s doing just that. The majority of participants have applied the business plans that they made in The GEA, actively adapting them to meet the changing needs of their enterprises. All of the participants surveyed loved the mentorship component of The GEA, saying that it built on and improved the education they received from the course. A whopping 83% of respondents feel that The GEA has increased the sustainability of their business or organization, and an overwhelming 100% would recommend The GEA to others. Wow! Now that’s something to write home about!

Josephine Chavaseki, fearless facilitator

Since The 1010 Project began its work in Kenya about 6 years ago a great deal has been done. This is evident because there are now about 20 community-based organizations (CBOs) who are partners with The 1010 Project. The CBOs are located in different places in Kenya, with a big percentage in the city slums of Nairobi (Kibera, Mathare, Korogocho, Kayole, and Mukuru kwa Njenga). More programs and people are joining the story of The 1010 Project to break the poverty cycle.

Some achievements:

• Establishment of a network of Kenyan CBOs and FBOs (faith-based organizations)
• Establishment of long-lasting relationships built on friendship
• Partners monthly meetings (sharing of experiences and ideas has allowed us to learn from each other)
• Support from The 1010 Project international office (Denver)
• Annual visits by staff and interns from the international office
• Willful support and participation by the community

The Global Entrepreneur Academy has brought a new perception of The 1010 Project. The new outlook is very educational and people are very willing to get the knowledge on how to break the poverty cycle through social entrepreneurship.

The beauty of the GEA is that it empowers the people and mitigates the “dependency syndrome” that can accompany international development. The training module is well designed and we look forward to a time when the people shall not need any support from The 1010 Project because they shall be able to meet their own personal needs.

Since we began the GEA in October 2010, at least 15 people have been trained and they are in turn going to disseminate the entrepreneurial skills to the members of their individual CBOs. It is very encouraging to see the business ideas they have and also the passion for breaking the poverty cycle.

Our vision for 2011 is to see that we train at least 50 CBO and FBO leaders and we look forward to training at least 100 members of the community on income-generating activities. This will include business planning, marketing, booking and savings.

Thank you. Join the story. Break the poverty cycle.

-Josephine Chavaseki