Self Help Signing Ceremony and Expo

December 13, 2011

Ambassador Donald Koran with associations members and community-based groups who received a financial award under the auspices of the U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund.

Self Help Expo

During an official event for Rwanda’s inaugural Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2011, the U.S. Embassy hosted a ceremony today to award financial assistance to a diverse group of Rwandan organizations.  Ambassador Donald Koran signed seven agreements worth a total of US $50,000 with associations and community-based groups under the auspices of the U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund.

The U.S. Ambassador’s Special Self-Help Fund represents part of a long-standing partnership, whereby the American people support activities initiated and carried out by Rwandans.  Today’s ceremony included a first-ever exposition of past projects as part of GEW’s annual initiative to fan the flames of entrepreneurship worldwide.  Expo participants sold goods ranging from papier-mâché piggy banks and fresh mushrooms to glass-beaded jewelry and thatched roofing panels.  The new grantees quickly engaged their predecessors, seeking advice on how to successfully deliver on their projects and how to maintain those successes beyond the life of the grant. 

The inaugural Self-Help Signing Ceremony and Expo - as a part of Rwanda’s Global Entrepreneurship Week 2011 - was an unmitigated success.  Whether seen from the eyes of the Expo participants who marketed their goods to a new set of customers, or from the perspective of the new grantees who signed their official grant agreements and made invaluable contacts with past beneficiaries, GEW Rwanda and the Self-Help Fund’s new partnership clearly provides a platform for Rwanda’s entrepreneurial community cooperatives.