What We’ve Accomplished
CGSGI is helping displaced women in Chocó, Colombia, turn their organic spice business, TANA, into a self-sustainable enterprise by introducing technological improvements and new market opportunities.
Since its establishment in 2007, CGSGI has been advancing sustainable development and alleviating poverty in economically distressed communities in Colombia and Peru. Specifically, CGSGI has:
- Launched a $20 million investment fund in Colombia in partnership with an affiliate of Fundación Carlos Slim. The fund will make investments in existing small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are currently underserved by capital markets and are looking to expand and scale up. The fund maintains a website (in Spanish) and can be accessed at: www.fondoacceso.com.
- Worked in conjunction with Fundación Pies Descalzos in Colombia to provide daily meals to 4,000 school children and income generation assistance to over 750 microenterprises. CGSGI has also committed to the creation of 4,000 jobs for vulnerable residents of the Bogotá, Barranquilla, Soacha, and Quibdo neighborhoods of Colombia.
- Assisted, as part of a joint project with the National Hotel Association of Colombia, with the establishment of market linkages between a network of small suppliers and six major hotels in Cartagena, Colombia. CGSGI has been providing technical assistance to these suppliers to improve their capacity, product quality, and the ability to make timely deliveries. The participating hotels have committed to purchase 20 percent of their requirements from suppliers participating in this project over a three-year period.
- Helped TANA — an organic spice business run by 150 Afro-Colombian women in Chocó, Colombia — renew its domestic organic certification and secure organic certification for the United States and Europe. CGSGI also funded improvements to TANA’s processing plant and has improved their business infrastructure with a distributor, packager, and inventory control system.
- Provided medical treatment to more than 55,000 people in remote areas of Colombia through medical missions in partnership with La Fundación Angelitos de Luz (Angels of Light Foundation), thereby improving the quality of life and general health of underserved residents of rural areas.
- Launched a program in Cajamarca, Peru, in conjunction with the Regional Government of Cajamarca and five mining companies to deliver nutrition services and micronutrients to more than 5,000 children and 2,000 expectant mothers. The project is targeted to reduce child malnutrition by 6 percent over a three-year period.
- Scaled-up the successful Poverty Reduction and Alleviation (PRA) Program in the Ancash and Cajamarca regions of Peru. This expansion included the continued support of two additional economic services centers (ESC) in Casma and Huari (Ancash) and one in Cajamarca. The ESCs, which provide technical assistance and consulting services, have helped more than 2,000 producers to expand their businesses and access markets.
- Implemented a program in Peru, in conjunction with its Ministry of Health and Fundación Carlos Slim, to deliver 50,000 cataract surgeries to the most underserved populations over a four-year period. The first surgical campaign began in June 2009 in Iquitos, Peru. Since its initiation, the program has enabled thousands of surgeries in 23 of the 24 regions of Peru.
