 |
| | | Title | MORINGA BASED SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISE From a nutritional problem to a business opportunity, lessons from a rural woman entrepreneur in Benin, Case Study 19 | | Author | ACBF | | Subject | SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISES | | Date of Publication | 2016019 | | Publisher | African Community of Practice on Management for Development result at the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) | | Number of Pages | 8 pages | | Language | English | | Geographical Coverage | Rwanda | | Keywords | Women and Entrepreneurship, Nutrition, Moringa, Herbs, Poverty Alleviation, RURAL WOMAN ENTREPRENEURS | | Abstract | Malnutrition is a serious concern in Benin. 32 percent of children aged 6 to 59 months suffer from stunting and more than 67,000 children suffer from acute malnutrition. In Ze district in the department of Atlantique in Benin, where Hounsou Mathilde is native, malnutrition rate is among the highest of the country. Hounsou Mathilde took advantage from the situation and successfully transform it into business opportunity. This knowledge product intends to showcase the initiative. We used direct interviews and participative observation to collect data on Hounsou Mathilde and her activities. Findings revealed that Hounsou Mathilde partnered with local non-governmental organizations and acquired basic skills in entrepreneurship. She established a small scale enterprise specialized in the processing of moringa leaves into powder. With her leadership, six women are employed in the processing unit which provides her community as well as households of the city of Cotonou with moringa leaves powder. With her initiative, she introduced a new form of valorisation of moringa leaves in her community and successfully impacted thousands of pregnant women, breastfeeding women and their children. Important lessons and policies have been drawn from her experience including the linkage between social problems and business opportunities, the need for necessary skills, tools and resources to unleash the potential of rural women. As recommendations, the African Capacity Building Foundation should develop gender based capacity building strategies likely to empower women and boost their participation in the transformation of Africa. For instance, ACBF could engage African governments in developing special programmes to (i) improve the participation of women in strategic sectors, (ii) improve access of women to lands and funds, (iii) reward women that create change in societies, publish these initiatives and celebrate their efforts. | | Copyright Holder | African Community of Practice (AfCoP) | | Copyright URL | http://www.acbf-pact.org | | Filesize | 607299 MB | | File Format | PDF | | [ View / download original document ] |
|
