In January 2023, the program "World Change Makers Homecoming" was inaugurated in Puyo, Pastaza. The program's main objective is to support the development and empowerment of social entrepreneurships led by people in conditions of human mobility, people from local communities, with emphasis on women and the LGBTIQ+ community.
Around 150 entrepreneurs were registered to start this integral program, which includes academic training and psychological and psychosocial support.
The entrepreneurs went through an exhaustive academic process that lasted four months. While being part of this process, the participants had access to asynchronous training (e-learning platform with theoretical and practical material), synchronous live sessions, and face-to-face events (Codeis Talks).
As a final step, 28 of our participants ranked in a preliminary contest where they presented their pitch to a group of judges, which gave them feedback and tips for their entrepreneurship. As a result of this contest, six entrepreneurs passed the World Change Makers Awards: Finals.
To wrap up this process, on April 21st, our 87 changemakers celebrate their graduation, where they received a certificate and recognition from the Codeis Team and Pastaza authorities.
As a result, our winners were: Jennifer Viteri, Adriana Grefa, Hernán Heras, Yolanda Ruiz, Tabita Cajima, and Angélica Malaver.
And last but not least, on June 15th, our winners received their seed capital according to their needs and we are sure that this incentive will be the key to empowering their entrepreneurships.