Daniel Metzler
- Sep 13, 2021
- 2 min read

Why microbusiness

Updated: Sep 29, 2021

The situation in Ecuador is very different from that in Austria.

Situation Ecuador:

growing unemployment
State system does not help people differently than in Austria (AMS, WIFO, etc.)
The economy does not offer enough jobs otherwise, as in Austria, it is not possible to integrate into the existing labor market through training

The goal:

Self help
independent & self-sustaining micro-businesses with a focus on ecological, ethical and economic sustainability
long-term path out of poverty

Training goal of:

Use God-given talents and opportunities, stand out from existing small businesses and train crisis-proof companies.

Target group:

Due to the high number of refugees from Venezuela and the Corona crisis, more and more well-educated people are affected by extreme poverty .
The program focuses on a group of people who already meet at least three of these criteria
Expertise The examination of specialist knowledge is checked in a telephone call / personal conversation and is also shown in the list of submitted materials and the planned income / expenditure invoice
Support / resources Families who suffer from extreme poverty and have to fight for their daily bread often have too little stamina and end their business as soon as difficulties arise. This is why they are better supported first by an emergency aid program and only later included in the microbusiness program. (see also 3 step plan)
Experience already worked in the field of microbusiness
Education In order to be able to run a microbusiness successfully, reading / writing is an important prerequisite. A certain level of education is therefore required in the urban areas. In the more rural regions, at least one child / friend / relative must be involved who can use the cell phone and communicate with us.

Find out more about PDV's microbusiness:

here

The way there:

So before it makes sense to start a microbusiness, living conditions have to improve. PDV supports level 1 with:

Emergency shelters in the event of a disaster
Food expenditure (starving people cannot think well)

If the immediate needs are met (had something to eat today) PDV supports the improvement of health:

Medical check-ups in PDV
Forwarding of severe cases to a partner clinic

and with the improvement of living conditions through the construction of sanitary facilities and other things in the immediate vicinity of the people concerned.

Furthermore, already in Level 2, PDV offers Bible courses and weekly encouragement via the social network.

If the needy people are out of the immediate crisis situation, level 3 "Development" can be started.

For example, as is currently the case with the Microbusiness Program.

The goal in this 3-step plan is that no family needs to be supported for longer than 2 years, as they will then have successfully completed level 3 and make a living independently / independently.