Elizabeth Haule is a 25 years old Dar es Salaam resident. In the past, she used to engage in network marketing business by working with companies such as Alliance Aims Global where she invested her little money.
Apart from engaging in network marketing, Elizabeth also had M-pesa kiosk. Lack of business skills in areas such as financial literacy led her to lose a whole capital in both businesses.
Elizabeth was completely confused by this situation and she started losing hope. Later she came to learn about the opportunity offered by PANDA programmme. The social media site, Instagram came to her rescue. It was through it she saw Her Initiative’s posters about PANDA programme. She was really happy to learn about the programme and got interested to join a catering category.
Elizabeth decided to apply to join the 2019 training cohort to learn in both theory and practice in undertaking catering business with sound entrepreneurship knowledge and financial management. This is because lack of them led to her failures in past attempts.
What she learned when she got a chance to attend the trainings included financial literacy covering issues in saving, budgeting, records keeping, goals setting, capital and management. Further, Elizabeth also learnt skills in cookery, food delivery, presentation of foods, business branding and digital marketing for making expansion. As a result, she has seen tremendous change especially in areas such as saving to get capital, marketing and identification of business opportunities available.
About the significant change she sees in herself after the course she says that “the most significant change which made differences I see in my life after attending PANDA capacity building training is a positive mindset I gained towards starting and a developing business. I am grateful to my mentors especially Ms Suzi whose classes have helped me expand my thinking horizon to do well in business initiatives and ideas.’’
PANDA programme helped Elizabeth to abandon unprofitable business she previously engaged to catering which she currently doing and enjoying.
“PANDA program totally shifted me from network marketing business to catering business which always helps me to generate my own daily income” She accounts.
PANDA programme has been a game changer for many of the young women who got the chance to participate like Elizabeth. Learning through this programme has been quite positive experience given the way the programme was structured to offer practical trainings and mentorship sessions. The latter part for example helped many young women to realize some of their hidden potentials. Discovering them through this programme has been one of the greatest achievement all along.