Women under the wings of YCAB Foundation’s program received digital marketing training to improve their business.YCAB Foundation partook in implementing holistic assistance in Indonesia in a global program that by the end of 2020 had reached more than 197,000 entrepreneurs in 32 countries in EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) and APAC (Asia-Pacific).
This fruitful program collaboration was launched in April 2020 when Youth Business International and its experienced network of Enterprise Support Organizations drew on its 20 years of experience in providing integrated support for youth entrepreneurs and experts, with support of USD 5 million from Google.org and support from Google employees.
Painting resilience on its arms, YCAB Foundation innovates throughout the pandemic by switching to a digital approach in its program by developing an integrated educational learning system that features a Chatbot and a Learning Management System (LMS).
Holistic assistance is provided to women-owned MSMEs, to furnish their business skills.Women-owned MSMEs under the wings of the YCAB Foundation are provided with financial literacy training and mentoring sessions with topics that include but are not limited to, financial management, digital marketing, and online loans, to help sustain their businesses. Participants also received information related to Covid-19, health information, and stress management. This program has reached 36,579 and trained 2,576 women-owned MSMEs in Indonesia.
Refocus, Retool and Reset reflects the in-depth report of Youth Business International’s Rapid Response and Recovery program (3R) insights:
- 375,588 entrepreneurs reached through helplines websites and videos and 145,738 entrepreneurs accessed in-depth services such as mentoring, coaching, business clinics, webinars, and training
- 103,796 businesses supported by YBI survived the initial impacts of the pandemic, with 92,803 jobs maintained
- 113,016 entrepreneurs reporting improved business knowledge and skills to manage the risk and uncertainty
- 67,895 female, young, migrant, and refugee entrepreneurs accessed intensive training, mentoring, and advisory support to support them to adapt and strengthen their businesses
Through the program and details in Refocus, Retool and Reset, YBI has identified six essential areas for future support that will ensure entrepreneurs have the emotional resilience, agility, and resources to allow them to build back stronger and harness new opportunities post-pandemic.
- Build emotional resilience to address the short and long-term impacts of the pandemic and other shocks
- Stimulate and support business pivots that are essential for survival and growth
- Enable digital solutions that offer the promise of a sustainable future
- Create linkages between entrepreneurs and private sector actors to leverage expertise, innovation, and technology
- Enable entrepreneurs’ access to finance
- Invest in and develop fully inclusive outreach and programs
Veronica Colondam, CEO and founder of YCAB Foundation said: “We are grateful to be a part of this initiative and provide solutions to the problems faced by tens of thousands of women MSMEs in Indonesia. All the limitations during the pandemic did not break our spirit to continue to innovate so that together we can grow a strong generation and help advance the country’s economy.”
Please read the full report on the Youth Business International website or click here.
