The frozen cheese tequeños from Venezuela, the vacuum-packed and frozen chickpea snacks from Iran, the purple corn drink Maiztea from Ecuador -from the rural parish of Calpi, in Riobamba, Chimborazo province- and more than a hundred products such as gummies , brown salt and broken peanuts, coffee, soaps, bags, ceramics, come together in safe spaces and hangers to strengthen the enterprises of people who are in a situation of greater vulnerability, including refugees, migrants and Ecuadorians.
The initiative is called Purchase with Purpose and this week it was presented by the United Nations System in Ecuador. This seeks to “reduce the gaps that exist between the supply and demand of products created by small entrepreneurs. We hope that it can be a space in which they find a safe and inclusive place to promote their products and be self-sufficient”, indicates Lena Savelli, Resident Coordinator of the UN System in Ecuador.
Informal work is an outlet for 79% of Venezuelans who subsist in Ecuador and 72% earn $84 a month at most
In Ecuador, there are enterprises that still experience serious difficulties in connecting to the market, and in view of this, this initiative proposes to facilitate the connection with safe commercial spaces in local and national markets, through the implementation of hangers or displays where different products will be put up for sale. products at once.
At the moment there are twelve stores and allied institutions in Quito, Ambato, Manta, Portoviejo and Cuenca that display products from the Purchase with Purpose initiative. The idea is that other stores will join in the coming months nationwide. They hope to be in Guayaquil, Ibarra, Santo Domingo and Lago Agrio.
There are 120 products from 95 entrepreneurs and producers that are part of Purchase with Purpose. 80% of this catalog corresponds to products made by women and 50% of the initiative’s entrepreneurs correspond to refugee and migrant entrepreneurs. 40% are bio-enterprises of productive associations of the Sierra, Coast and Amazonia.
The initiative is implemented by UN Ecuador and other agencies such as UNHCR -the United Nations Refugee Agency-, FAO, IOM, ILO, UN Women, UNDP, UNFPA and WFP. It is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and the United Nations Cooperation Framework for Sustainable Development Ecuador – UNSDCF 2022-2026, and it contributes to promoting socioeconomic equality and sustainable productive transformation.
“Purchase with Purpose follows the approach of leaving no one behind and benefits the most vulnerable people,” adds Savelli, explaining that the small producers and entrepreneurs who are served by the different programs and projects of the UN System Agencies can find fair marketing opportunities for their products.
stories
- Jennifer Valdivieso’s cheese tequeños began promoting themselves at local fairs more than 5 years ago when she started Tentempié. She now sells this traditional Venezuelan snack, which is her star product, in supermarkets and mini-markets in Cuenca and Quito. The frozen, ready-to-bake presentation of ella is the first of its kind in the country. She tells in www.compraconproposito.ec that her venture helps the local economy with the generation of employment and that she also buys from local suppliers.
- Ali – a 21-year-old refugee, upon arriving in Quito, he dedicated himself to preparing and selling Iranian food informally in a car and now he already has a corporate image and his brand is Mash Ali’s, which is born from Iranian family recipes, 100% vegan products , gluten-free and with low cost for the reach of customers. Its star product TIKKE are vacuum-packed and frozen chickpea snacks, and are sold in stores that support the artisanal marketing of small producers and local entrepreneurs.
- Based on purple corn, the SARIV Association turns this ancestral Andean seed into a refreshing, energetic and nutritious drink. The purple corn drink is a bio-enterprise dedicated to the production and processing of purple corn, located in the rural parish of Calpi, in Riobamba, Chimborazo province. Its members are mostly women and they plant purple corn in an agroecological way, which will be the main ingredient of this special drink. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
Alia is a professional author and journalist, working at 247 news agency. She writes on various topics from economy news to general interest pieces, providing readers with relevant and informative content. With years of experience, she brings a unique perspective and in-depth analysis to her work.
