Municipal Product Fair and Entrepreneurship Competition

A little over a year ago, I arrived half way through the school year and attempted to try and introduce an entrepreneurship course within three high schools on the island. My work has consisted of  training local professors in and co-teaching the class. Since February of this year, my current seniors have received  the course and worked  to complete a  business plan for a creative product that they have chosen utilizing local  resources within the community.  

This past week, we held the first product fair and entrepreneurship  competition on the island of Ometepe as a way for the students to present all of their hard work they had prepared throughout the year. 

Sometimes as volunteers working within education, work can be frustrating, feeling as though we are not seeing the fruits of our efforts. To be honest, this year felt like every time I took one step forward, I turned around and we were four steps backwards.However, the day of the competition, after working within the  Nicaraguan school system for over a year, it felt as if it had been worth it. 

The day of the event ran very smoothly mostly due to everyone stepping up to the plate to lend a handing hand. We work for sustainability here, and after coordinating the event with my local counterparts, it was nice to arrive day of and watch things run their course.  Also, I had an excellent panel of judges that basically ran the show themselves.On the judges panel, there were two representatives from Centro Empresarial Pellas  (the CSR branch of the largest Nicaraguan business, a consortium of over 20 companies) who run  a co-investment program to help tourism related businesses on the island as well as provide business advising, a promoter on the island for the ministry of tourism, and a local animated business owner who is also the head of the association for small business owners in the community.

 Because of their professional backgrounds, I have to admit I was a little nervous about what they would think of the kids’ plans. I mean these are high school seniors with no former experience in running a business?   However, the judges seemed to really enjoy the presentations. One of the judges that can be an especially hard nut to crack continued  to praise the program. He basically said that he works for the top business  venture in Central America and had no  prior experience writing a business plan until his last classes in the university. He continued to reiterate to the students that he wished he had been able to participate in this sort of program and that the students should really take advantage of the opportunity.  The other judges also seemed very keen to support these up and coming micro-businesses if at all possible including promoting the products in their businesses, etc. 

Competition was fierce. The top two teams are able  to proceed to the regional competition between the departments of Rivas, Granada, and Carazo. After much deliberation, the judges decided that the winners of the first product fair and entrepreneurship competition in the municipality of Altagracia 2012:

3^rd place: Coffee made from Okra Seeds (El Buen Gusto)

2^nd place: Natural Fruit Smoothies (Nutri-Fruti)

And the winner is... Natural Coconut Oil (Coco)

Other notable products that came out of the course this year:

Cinnamon soap, organic pesticide, aloe vera shampoo, soap made from lard and ash, avocado oil, cough syrup from honey, carved wood jewelry, cookies made from fresh cacao, mango pomade, cashew fruit honey, coffee flan, almond oil, organic coffee, pineapple jelly, beet slushies, plantain flour, tamarind jelly, carrot cookies, organic compost..

 And special shout out:

 Big Tuni Light.. A New World Full of Light and Happiness.

Yes- one student group wanted to make a fireworks business. 

Usually social studies courses are seen as “filler courses” in the school system here focusing on things like gardening, sewing, and woodwork. And because the project was introduced this year, the students started into the school year not knowing what to  expect of the class. Like most high school students, the idea of a business plan was very much a foreign concept. I  recognize that they   had never done this type of work before, and I was extremely proud of the projects that came from these students. In the end, they did take  pride in the project and  understood the importance of entrepreneurship and possibilities that lie within  their communities. If you cannot tell, I am so proud and impressed with them. Until the last minute some of them were fighting to perfect their work and as said in Nicaragua, are “luchadores” within their communities.  

This year was also a challenge for the teachers that I have been co-teaching the course with and without their hard work, availability, and talent this would not have been possible.  Because there is still no formal training for entrepreneurship in Nicaragua, these teachers are often coerced into teaching the course with no background in the content let alone the proper  resources to teach themselves the material. The competition was an excellent opportunity for them to see how far they have come.  

At the end of the day both teachers and students left feeling proud of their work and that is all that I could have hoped for.  

Now we are on to prepare  for the regional competition. Wish us luck.

Okra Coffee: Toasted and ground okra seeds. A tasty, caffeine free alternative.  

I have had a number of local businesses interested in promoting student products and even potential funding options to help with start-up. This is an exciting time with many  opportunities for these youth. Let’s hope they have the courage to take the next steps and make this a reality.

For more information about the Entrepreneurship course, check out the following links:

Web: www.laempresacreativa.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/emprendedurismonicaragua

Youtube: www.youtube.com/emprendedurismonica