Co-operative Retail Commodity Distribution Program
- At risk youth
- Employment
- Food security
- Income generation
- Poverty alleviation
- Youth leadership
- Social enterprise
Example: Walk us through a specific example(s) of how this solution makes a difference; include its primary activities.
Samantha
Anderson
International Centre for Sustainable Cities
, BC
International Centre for Sustainable Cities
604-596-0965 ex307
205-1525 West 8th Ave Vancouver, BC V6J 1T5
, BC
Non-profit/NGO/Citizen-sector Organization
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South Asia.
Less than $1 Million.
$15,000
5-24.
10
$100,000 grants for training, capacity building, supervision and project management for 1 year ($16,000 per city + $4000 lessons learned workshop bringing all 6 cities together)
$1000 loan for capital investment (purchase of wholesale commodities) per city
Idea phase
Co-operative enterprise efforts in Sri Lanka were successful from 1965 to 1975 until restrictions on import commodities hampered the economy in mid 1970’s. Then, economic reforms in the early 1980s swung to the other extreme emphasizing the free market as a solution to all problems. This took over the entire society, widening the gap between the rich and poor. Today, the approach to poverty reduction with regards to financing, from the grassroots to national levels, micro credit and international projects all depend on loans and debts. It ignores the need for capacity building and partnerships.
Partnerships and collaborative investments are needed in order to develop the economy in a more sustainable way. The National government initiates partnerships as well as collaborative efforts for larger enterprises. This project focuses on micro-enterprises and low-income communities. The project encourages collaboration and partnership between the private sector as represented by Chambers of Commerce, and poor communities as a way to develop skills needed to run a business, and leverage the Chamber’s purchasing power. The partnership in Kurunegala has been catalyzed by the VanLanka Community Foundation operating under the umbrella of the Sustainable Cities Foundation, and would assist in the skills training and capacity building efforts.
The initial grant is needed to provide training, and seed money to start up the pilot business. The commodity retail business will then create a revolving fund that can be used for other investments, and/or activities of benefit to the community but not necessarily profit-driven. There are already several Chambers of Commerce around the country interested to see if the model would work. If the pilot project is successful, the public investment is focused on the training/capacity building, while the private finance would come in the form of a loan for the start-up of the business i.e. the initial purchase of the wholesale commodities and shop rental.
Informality, Lack of collateral, Lack of financial capacity, Lack of SME access to skills / knowledge / markets, Unavailability of financial products tailored to SME needs.
The solution addresses the informal nature of micro-enterprises, their lack of collateral and unavailability of loans to start up this kind of business. Most importantly, it addresses the lack of skills, knowledge and access to markets through the partnership between the Chamber of Commerce and the youth group.
Approximately 450 words left (2000 characters).
The project will start with one pilot in Kurunegala Municipality and expand to 5 other cities
The success of the initial pilot project will engender similar projects in 5 other cities. Grants for training will continue to be required, but the success of the pilot will catalyze loans for the Chambers of Commerce in the other five cities to start up the businesses ($1000 per city).
1.75 years:
3 months initial training, set-up and marketing
3 months supervision of youth group’ commodity distribution enterprise, accounting methodologies, troubleshooting
3 months capacity building with youth groups for profit distribution (e.g. as micro credit, as grants for community projects etc.)
3 months scaling up of project to other cities followed by 9 months of training, supervision, capacity building etc.
Yes
• Opposition from current retailers
• Lack of proper training
• Lack of customers
International funders
Chambers of Commerce
Once the initial training and set-up is completed, the enterprises will be self-sustaining.
The project cannot start without the initial investment in training. Once the initial training has taken place, the capital investment is small, so if the main funder is lost after the training, the funds can be replaced through private donations/investment, and/or micro-credit. Lost of the major funder would impact the ability to expand the project to other cities, but since several Chambers of Commerce throughout the country have expressed interest in setting up similar projects once they see if the pilot is successful, it is likely that the funding for replication can be replaced.
The partnership between the youth groups and the Chambers of Commerce are key, but will be assisted through partnerships with the Ceylon Research Network, the VanLanka Community Foundation and Sustainable Cities, and the municipal councils of each community. The NGOs provide training, facilitation of the relationships, awareness of the solution and scaling up. The municipal councils provide support and may be a source of future funding to replicate the solution in other communities.
Turnover of staff, lack of capacity of new staff
The solution aims to scale up to a total of 6 low income communities in multiple municipalities across Sri Lanka. By engaging municipal councils, funding agencies, and other actors, the solution could potentially reach even more communities.