YCI HerStart Ghana

20/03/2024

Last week, YCI Ghana hosted this year’s first Catalyst Fund Pitch Event! Five social entrepreneurs presented their business ideas to be considered for the HerStart Catalyst Fund, which provides funding that can help them start their business idea or grow their existing social ventures.

Thank you to our panelists Wuni Barakatu, Abubakari Mohammed and Lydia Katere for sharing their time and insights to make this event successful! We’re looking forward to seeing these businesses grow and create more positive impacts in their communities.

Learn more about HerStart ➡️ herstart.org

08/03/2024

Happy International Women's Day from YCI HerStart Ghana! 💜 Learn more about our work and impact at herstart.org.

04/12/2023

💜 Good afternoon Tamale!💜

Last week, we hosted the combined Catalyst Fund award, TARA (Technology Access and Resource Allocation) award, and the Seed Your Social Venture (SEED) graduation ceremonies! Thank you to our distinguished guests from the National Youth Authority, the Gender Ministry, and GIZ for your remarks, and congratulations to all our participants!🥳

The YCI HerStart: Innovate the Future program is a 7-year initiative in collaboration with local partners, aimed at fostering innovative solutions for a more equitable, prosperous economy and greener Earth in Ghana, Zanzibar, and Uganda. The project is funded by Global Affairs Canada, and is committed to building an inclusive environment for fostering social innovation. A massive shout-out to our donors for making all of this possible!

In Tamale, HerStart is also supported by our partner organization Norsaac. Hafsah Sey Sumani (Norsaac’s Head of Programs, Policy & Influencing) congratulated the graduands and award winners and delivered some words of wisdom. 💜

The SEED graduation marks the completion of our intensive 8-week training program to equip female entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 and 35 with the tools and knowledge to launch their social enterprise. 21 remarkable young women graduated in Tamale on this day! 🥳

The Catalyst Fund gives graduates of our SEED program the opportunity to apply for seed funding to start or grow their social enterprises. 11 young women were granted a total of 17,000 CAD, empowering them to bring their innovative ideas to life. Furthermore, 10 young women were awarded TARA devices, equipping them with laptops, tablets, and smartphones to amplify the impact and reach of their enterprises.

Congratulations to the aspiring young female entrepreneurs for their achievements once more, and to the incredible staff at YCI Ghana - including our Project Lead Marie Vanderpuye, our Operations and Finance Manager Sheila Adufutse, and our Partnership and Training Coordinator Humu Abdul-Rahaman - for their crucial role in supporting these young women’s entrepreneurial efforts! 💜

Finally, a reminder that applications for our two-day training program, Sparking Social Innovation (SPARK), are now open! If you are a woman between the ages of 18 and 35 in Tamale and/or Bolgatanga interested in developing your entrepreneurial skills and giving back to your community and/or the environment, this opportunity is for you! Please find the link on our page🤩

01/11/2023

Today our international fellow Ariel and our lovely YCI Ghana Project Lead Marie Vanderpuye attended the Digital Innovation Week event hosted by HopIn Academy at Mariam Hotel! And guess who they ran into at the MSME exhibition but none other than two of HerStart’s very own Catalyst Fund beneficiaries?🤩

Marie participated in the day’s panel discussion, engaging in conversation with other key stakeholders surrounding overcoming barriers to digital innovation, giving the HerStart program’s TARA initiative (Technology Accessibility and Resource Allocation) a shout-out! HOPin Academy

31/10/2023

Good afternoon!☀️🤩

Are you an aspiring female entrepreneur located in/around Tamale between the ages of 18 and 35? Are you passionate about starting or growing your business and also giving back to your community, or tackling environmental issues? If this sounds like you or anyone you know, you may be interested in applying for the HerStart program!

Our 2-day 'Sparking Social Innovation' training sessions in Tamale are starting back up again in December, hosted with the support of our partner organizations Norsaac and NiV. We are not able to cover transportation at this time, but we encourage all female entrepreneurs in the area to apply! ☺️ 💜

SSI APPLICATION LINK:

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20/10/2023

Our monthly learning session took place on October 18th and we are excited to share the highlights with you!☺️

Our monthly learning sessions are designed based on participant feedback, and are open to all our HerStart alumni. We asked the attendees of our last session what they'd be interested in learning about, and we delivered a successful session - 💸Marketing 101💸 - accordingly:

💜 Our co-presenters, Program and Partnerships fellow Jamini Baskaran and Monitoring, Evaluation, & Learning fellow Emily Meier, delivered a wonderful and engaging session.

🤩 They talked about the 'marketing mix', social media strategy, and led an activity where participants had the opportunity to design their own marketing plan.

💜 Jamini and Emily were joined by guest speaker and Hubtel customer relations head Moses, who walked our participants through setting up an online shop.

Thank you to our participants, the NiV team, and fellows for engaging with us. See you next month!

07/09/2023

Opportunities to contribute to the program in Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda are now available through the Mastercard Foundation Associate Program! 🟣

The Associate Program for graduates will provide young people with 12-month entry level roles to develop competencies and capabilities in leadership, employability, and basic entrepreneurship knowledge and skills, helping them thrive in the workplace.

How to apply for any of the over 300 positions:

➡️ Login or Register on the Baobab Platform at baobabplatform.org/
➡️ Navigate to the Opportunities page by selecting the icon on the menu bar. In the toolbar on the left side of the screen, select Opportunity type and select Internships.
➡️ Finally, select your country. The page feed will then provide all the internships available in your country.
➡️ To be sure that the internship you are viewing is part of the Associate Program, look for "Mastercard Foundation Transitions Community" at the top of each post.
➡️ Apply for positions that interest you by Sept 15, 2023. After you apply, join the Mastercard Foundation Transitions Community Chat Group on Baobab to see all updates and new roles.

Note: More roles are being added - join today so you don’t miss out on new updates/opportunities!

28/08/2023

We are excited to share the highlights from our first monthly learning session, "Embracing Personal Hygiene in a Changing World.” The Bolgatanga team hosted this event for HerStart program alumni, with a total of 16 women entrepreneurs attending the workshop.

Jenna Lazarou, a Gender Equality Fellow, facilitated discussions on various aspects of personal hygiene, including daily routines, self-care practices, and the importance of maintaining good hygiene for overall well-being. The active engagement of our attendees made the event truly remarkable.

Stay tuned for more exciting events!

14/08/2023

This past Saturday was International Youth Day — a day that shines a spotlight on the boundless potential of young minds around the world. In the spirit of International Youth Day, we're thrilled to share a special video that dives into Mariam's inspiring story.

Mariam is a social entrepreneur who turns discarded sachet water bags into stylish, eco-friendly handbags, showcasing the power of innovation and sustainability. Let's continue to support and uplift visionaries like Mariam, who are shaping a brighter and more green future for us all.

31/07/2023

Thank you to everyone who joined us at the Repurpose Your Plastics workshop! Plastic waste and its environmental effects continue to be a significant concern for our global community. In Ghana, where only 10% of plastic waste is recycled annually, the excessive use of single-use plastics needs to be addressed.

Climate Action Fellows Tara Carson and Nidhi Gupta facilitated the workshop on creative ways to repurpose plastics. The atmosphere was filled with creativity and optimism as we collectively explored how to address plastic use at both individual and community levels. We were thrilled to have a total of 27 adult participants and 30+ children attend the session.

Let's continue spreading awareness, encouraging responsible plastic use, and exploring innovative solutions. Together, we can make a lasting difference for our environment and future generations. 🌱🌎