Beneficiaries: 450 young people
Completion date: December 2025
Country: Haiti
Executive summary
According to UNICEF, nearly 59 per cent of the population in Haiti lives in poverty and an estimated 4 million children need support and assistance. Many families living in Haiti experience instability due to several compounding factors including high unemployment rates and lack of jobs, political unrest, inadequate access to basic infrastructure and catastrophic natural disasters. The 2010 and 2021 earthquakes as well as the 2016 hurricane devastated Haitian families, and many have still not recovered their livelihoods.
Families living in rural communities are particularly vulnerable. Caregivers often struggle to find work and must rely on low-paying subsistence farming to earn an income. As a result, many caregivers are unable to provide adequate food, shelter, education and health care for their children. Children in Haiti often grow up without an education, leaving them with little choice but to repeat the generational cycle of poverty.
Compassion’s frontline church partners in Haiti have seen the desperate need to support the young people they serve by providing them with the skills they need to become self-sufficient before they enter the workforce. Not only will this help young people today, but over time it will also boost Haiti’s economy as more people enter diverse sectors in the country. Compassion has already launched the first phase of the entrepreneurial support intervention, providing more than 5,000 young people age 15 to 24 from more than 50 frontline church partners with business and entrepreneurship training. The students currently enrolled in phase one will compete in a business contest, where 240 small businesses from the initial group will submit their full business plans.
This proposal covers phase two of the major entrepreneurship pilot project, in which 120 small businesses will be selected to receive low-interest loans to start their small business. Funding will be awarded based on factors such as the targeted market, innovation and relevance, financial need and profitability analysis. Compassion staff and intervention specialists will provide regular monitoring and support for each participant for two years after receiving the loans to help participants meet their loan repayment and business goals.
Summary
Background
The first phase of the entrepreneurship intervention launched in August 2022 with 5,258 participants age 15 to 24. These students belong to more than 50 frontline church partners in the northern region of Haiti, where there is significant potential for growth. However, many communities in the northern region also face several challenges including lack of market access, frequent floods and droughts and inadequate access to basic infrastructure and modern technology.
For those starting a small business in Haiti, accessing a business loan is nearly impossible. Banks are reluctant to loan money to young business owners, and even the most prepared entrepreneurs may never receive the funding needed to launch their businesses. Registering a business in Haiti is also a long and complicated process and companies must pay a multitude of taxes when they first register. Many new business owners in Haiti do not have the time, capital or knowledge to wade through this complex system.
The need
For young people living in Haiti, running a small business is a goal they have little hope of ever achieving. A complex political atmosphere, recent natural disasters, poor local infrastructure and lack of job opportunities have left many young men and women with no choice but to work unreliable, low-paying jobs to earn any income they can.
Your generosity will provide business loans to 450 young people age 15 to 24 who have the most innovative and relevant 120 businesses ideas. Young people will also receive regular support for two to help them launch and run their small businesses. The first phase of the intervention is already in progress and has addressed lack of access to business training. A total of 5,258 young people have already learned valuable business, social and financial skills through workshops and practical lessons.
With your support, the second phase of the intervention will launch, aiming to address the difficulty of accessing loans for start-up businesses, allowing about 450 promising young people operating 120 businesses to acquire the financial support they need to thrive. Funding will be distributed through financial institutions and will be awarded based on several factors, including the nature of the business, targeted markets, financial need, profitability analysis, etc. After a grace period, beneficiaries will start repaying the loans at a low interest rate of 1 per cent to 2 per cent. Church and Compassion staff, including specialists from Compassion’s National Office, will provide ongoing monitoring and support for these young entrepreneurs to help them be successful.
What your gift will do
Your gift will provide 450 young people representing 120 new businesses in northern Haiti with further entrepreneurship training and business loans, including:
-
Business training for 450 youth
- Food
- Transportation
- Training materials
-
Hired consultant
- Lodging
- Food
- Transportation
- Training module development
- Loans for 120 businesses
- Project implementer fees for 14 months
Logistics
- Local contribution: Local contribution was made during phase one of this intervention.
- Handling of funds: Compassion Haiti will work closely with frontline church staff and intervention specialists to ensure this project stays withing budget.
- Monitoring and follow-up: Staff from frontline church partners and from Compassion’s National Office in Haiti will provide ongoing support and monitoring for two years after the participating businesses receive their loans.
*If we raise more funds than are needed for this activity, the extra money will go to our Urgent Needs Fund. No less than 80 per cent of your donation will fund initiatives that directly impact those we serve.