Following the success of our pilot pilot business development project in 2022, we are thrilled to announce the return of Dragons Den with our partner, Young Achievers Foundation (YAF) in Malawi. Dragons Den 2 will provide 60 women with the skills and resources they need to succeed in business and become financially self-sufficient.
Malawi remains one of the world’s least developed countries, ranking 169 out of 191 on the Human Development Index with over 71 per cent of the population living below the poverty line in 2023. In 2020 the World bank/International Labour Organization reported a youth unemployment rate in Malawi of almost 10%.
When this figure is disaggregated by gender, it is clear that women are harder hit and the strict definition of unemployment disguises the reality for many young women, with an estimated 21% underemployed and almost a third of potential employment falling within the informal sector. Although the 1995 Malawi Constitution guarantees equal rights to men and women, statutory and customary laws and social norms create immense obstacles to equity perpetuate gender disparities. In turn these disparities impact on the division of power, participation and control over resources and decision – making, so that Malawian women remain disadvantaged in all areas of society.
Since 2013 we have been working in partnership YAF to deliver vocational skills and business skills training to individuals in and around Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe. In 2022 we launched our pilot business development project specifically targeting women from existing business in the Kauma District. In addition to providing training in basic business skills, the project gave participants the opportunity to pitch their business plans to a board of grant-makers and was quickly dubbed the ‘Dragons Den’.
Participants of the Dragons Den 2 project in their business training class
Over the course of 6 months, 60 women from existing businesses will attend training in business management skills, covering topics from bookkeeping and customer record management, to setting prices and calculating profit & loss. With guidance and support from the YAF staff, they will then be helped to develop a business plan to take their enterprise forward.
24 women whose business plans are considered to have the greatest potential for success will receive an additional 2 days training, before going on to give a 10 minute presentation of their business proposals to an independent panel of ‘Dragons’. The panel will include a member from the National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEE), a micro-finance institution dedicated to fostering economic empowerment and economic inclusion by providing financial support to aspiring entrepreneurs and established businesses across various sectors.
Representatives from 14 winning individual business or business groups will receive a business grant, a non-repayable investment in the new business. 12 individual businesses will each win a grant of 300,000 MWK each, and 2 business groups will win a grant of 500,000 MWK. In addition, they will each receive ongoing mentorship and support through quarterly visits from the project coordinator.
Trainees who did not ‘enter the Den’ will be signposted to other opportunities for funding and ongoing business support in the community. They will be encouraged to create informal savings and networking groups which provide a platform for ongoing mutual support and ideas exchange after the training.
Each winning business will provide a product or free service to the host community. This could include delivering a training session in a local school, or providing a free meal or free hair and make-up session to a best-performing community employee (such as a local teacher, police officer, nurse or secretary). Furthermore, these activities will enable our project participants to showcase their specific trade skills and gain recognition within their community.
Grant Winners: 8 businesses received a business grant through our pilot project.
Other funding opportunities: A further 10 participants who did not receive grants in the Den, won grants/loans from other sources as a result of their involvement in the project.
Bank Accounts: The project created a relationship with the bank, who opened an account for each beneficiary without bank charges attached. The women now each have ATM cards and are able to make secure deposits and withdrawals of their savings.
Informal Savings Group: All the women who did not receive grants decided to form one savings group and agreed to contribute money on a weekly basis. The funds are then made available each week to one woman as a revolving loan, enabling her to invest in her business.
Increased Earnings and customer base: The earnings of our 8 grant winners were seen to increase from the start to the end of the project. At the start of the project, 24% of these businesses reported fewer than 40 customers per month. 12 months later, no business reported fewer than 40 customers per month. The greatest number of customers per month was calculated to be between 60 and 70. At the start of the project only 13% of businesses fell into this category; 12 months after the project began this had risen to 33%.
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January 2025
