Marketing and Microfinance Lessons

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Help the community to promote, advertise and financially manage their new born businesses.

In addition to the practical skills, PDS would like to provide practical knowledge about Microfinance and give a microcredit to the most motivated students with the best business ideas. The volunteers with knowledge related to microfinance can give trainings to the SSI students. They can also get a chance to buy the local materials and resources needed to support Microfinance Institution.

The first side of the Microfinance Institution is to teach Microfinance to the SSI students. It is an additional course to enrich the existing programs, on the basis of 1 class/week. The course aims at informing about microfinance rules and regulations as well as demonstrating the basic concepts of running business activities or the role of savings. Some international volunteers have already started to teach the students of some SSI programs. We plan to add this course to the programs permanently by employing a local teacher, as the students need also Microfinance knowledge to launch their small businesses. The course has to start with a public commitment from the participants to abide the microfinance principles and to attend all the classes.

The second side of the Microfinance Institution is to provide microcredits once the students are graduated. PDS team will ask them to develop their own solidarity group of 5 people and to
elect their group leader. After the formation of the groups, PDS will select the most motivated
ones with the best business ideas. Only the groups which have attended all the Microfinance classes will be allowed to receive the microcredit.

At the same time, the students of the SSI programq are invited to participate in a three days training/workshop. This workshop will focus on teaching digital marketing. The volunteers can help by giving Marketing training, designing labels, logo and other promotional materials to market and brand different initiatives.

Then, PDS team and the volunteers will continue to evaluate the project of all beneficiaries and measure their success. Also, they will advise them and train them on how they can increase their profits. The volunteers can participate in this evaluation process.

PDS is a charitable organization which empowers local people living in the rural areas of Zanzibar by providing skills and additional education.