Le projet

The “Rural Market Opportunities in the Gulf of Fonseca” project is sponsored by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by Swisscontact. It addresses entrenched poverty and low economic productivity in the Dry Corridor by enabling rural MSMEs, including agricultural producers, to take full advantage of the agricultural and non-agricultural market opportunities available to them. 
The project approach to rural private sector development, is to build strength throughout the local economic system – supporting small businesses to operate more efficiently and effectively; helping them gain access to and meet the demands of local, national and export markets; and fostering an enabling environment that is conducive to their success and sustainability of the businesses. It will also link local economic development plans to broader regional and national strategies to harmonise efforts and make them more efficient. The project will reach 7460 people and their households. 

Objectives

The project is expected to have achieved three intermediate outcomes:

• Improved business, technical and/or financing practices by small-scale enterprises, especially those led by or mainly employing women, youth and/or marginalized people living in poverty
• Increased productivity and sales by small-scale enterprises and producers, especially those led by or mainly employing women, youth and/or marginalized people living in poverty
• Strengthened entrepreneurial ecosystem in the municipalities with local and regional organisations and networks of entrepreneurs.

Highlighted activities

• Development of technical and administrative capacities of the target population
• Increased access to new markets.
• Strengthening of local platforms for social and economic development
• Competitive and business performance-related competitions.
• Local, national and international fairs.
• Development of new financial products.
• Development of business models.
• Development of new economic business development services.

Project partner

• Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock
• Secretariat of Economic Development
• CDEMIPYME
• Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the South CCIS
• Technological University of Honduras UTH
• Centro Universitario del Litoral Pacífico CURLP
• Honduran Institute of Tourism IHT