LOCAL ENTERPRISE & SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS

The big news of 2022 has been the purchase of a new diesel truck for the communities. This enables communities to run their own affordable transport business and get increased income from goods by transporting and selling them in the larger town markets where they can get up to three times the price on their produce than they will get locally. This investment is potentially very significant for the communities at a time where transport costs are at their highest. The truck allows the communities the independence to get around the high cost of local transport and creates freedom for them to trade.

Someone from each village will work with their community to organise the use of the truck to maximise profits. Simply put, you can fit more on the back of a truck than on the back of a mo-ped, allowing for greater cost efficiencies and scale.

The vision is for the truck to be self sufficient in the running and maintenance. The communities already want to buy another truck in three years so plan to save a portion of their profits over the next three years to make this possible.

Karma continues to support a revolving Entrepreneurs Fund that continues to support rolling numbers of entrepreneurs. To date 72 new businesses have been launched with the help of the fund. This fund was set up during the Ebola crisis for the communities to be able to launch and grow new businesses in particularly troubling times. Many of these businesses are focused on wider trade, and are female founded.