Nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit
Small Business Owners: Key to Ending Poverty
Small and mid-sized businesses in developing countries are operated and often founded by women and men aiming to provide greater life opportunities for themselves, their families, and their communities. With the right access to talent, markets, and financial services, these businesses will keep growing and contributing to their local and national economies.
The opportunity
For women, for youth
Entrepreneurship provides women and young people in particular with opportunities to escape poverty. It helps women achieve greater financial independence, often improving their decision-making power within families and increasing household spending on needs like education and health. And for the millions of youth in developing countries who may struggle to find formal jobs, obtaining the skills to start and expand their own business is not just critical to their own wellbeing but to their countries’ economic and political security.
We recognize that entrepreneurs face different opportunities and challenges based on their individual contexts. TechnoServe carefully adapts our methodology to better serve each particular community of entrepreneurs.
By the numbers
In 2023 TechnoServe helped increase revenue of more than 1.2 million people and businesses around the world, 42% of which were women.
The TechnoServe Touch
Creating independent success
TechnoServe supports entrepreneurs to find markets with untapped demand to build their growth strategies. We encourage them to test and capture these opportunities as quickly and affordably as possible. To help with this, we provide relevant and effective training, with programs that help small business owners navigate future organizational challenges by themselves. We’re able to optimize this work by constantly analyzing the data that is generated from our 22 enterprise development programs in 18 countries. By adhering to rigorous measurement, we strive to improve each program to be as effective and efficient as possible.
See the impact
Dreams come true
What do a dressmaker, a restaurant owner, and a cheesemaker have in common? Meet just three of the millions of lives that have been transformed through the power of private enterprise.
Transforming Local Economies
Thinking big for small shops
Small shops (“micro-retailers”) are vital to local economies, selling $11 trillion worth of goods annually in developing countries. In some countries, small shops sell 80 to 90% of all consumer goods, often to customers that larger retailers miss. If these local entrepreneurs could reach their full potential, their businesses would be game-changers for developing economies. But a lack of business skills and access to markets and financial services holds them back.
Our programs work with shop owners on best practices in shop management/customer care, sourcing and inventory management, recordkeeping, and merchandising—all critical to improving store operations and increasing profitability. We also help store owners form business groups that facilitate bulk ordering and direct linkages to suppliers and manufacturers. Our approach also addresses access to finance constraints, through rotating savings and credit associations and mutual credit guarantees.
Technology can be particularly transformative in this sector, and so we have piloted digital technologies that help shop owners manage inventory, sales, and finances. As TechnoServe seeks to work with more micro-retailers in the developing world, we will apply even more digital innovation to scale impact.
By the numbers
Our results suggest that with the right support, micro-retailers in the developing world can increase their incomes by 45%.
Smart Duka
See how our Smart Duka program is helping small shopkeepers in Africa learn how to build their business through customer service principles, inventory management, digital marketing, and more.
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