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Tegucigalpa, Honduras, March 22, 2011—
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and partners are supporting the growth and competitiveness of smaller businesses in Honduras through its Business Edge program, which aims to strengthen their management skills and potential contribution to local and regional economic growth.
IFC’s Business Edge is an innovative managerial training program offered in emerging markets worldwide. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the program has been implemented specifically in Bolivia, Haiti, and Honduras as an effort to strengthen their private sector’s growth. IFC’s strategy is to provide small businesses with access to customized management training to enable them to run their businesses more efficiently, thereby raising productivity, profitability, and competitiveness.
Business Edge was introduced in Honduras in 2010, in partnership with three local firms: Centro de Crecimiento de Recursos Humanos (CRECERH), Edusystems, and UNITEC. Within the last year, the program has reached 300 entrepreneurs locally, with a participant-satisfaction rate of more than 95 percent.
"The increased integration of economies in Central America and the Caribbean is opening new markets and creating more opportunities for many smaller businesses. But it’s also increasing competition. IFC’s Business Edge program helps entrepreneurs build the skills they need to compete more effectively in an increasingly globalized economy, helping to increase opportunities for local businesses,” said Rachel Kyte, IFC Vice President of Business Advisory Services. “Our partnership with CRECERH, EduSystems, and UNITEC to offer Business Edge in Honduras is an important part of IFC’s strategy to support smaller businesses in Honduras and strengthen the foundation for sustainable economic growth."
Using high-quality materials adapted to local-market characteristics and needs, Business Edge covers five managerial themes: finance and accountancy, general and operations management, marketing, human resources, and personal productivity skills. For more information, visit
www.lapiezaclave.com
.
Business Edge has not only been proven useful for smaller businesses, but also for middle management in larger companies and the value chain of larger companies and banks. Over the next two years, Business Edge in Honduras seeks to enhance capacity of local training-service providers to offer commercially viable management training workshops to more than 1,000 business owners and managers.
IFC’s strategy in Honduras seeks to promote access to finance for micro, small, and medium enterprises and help local companies become regional and global players. Through its advisory services, IFC aims to improve the overall business climate, promoting the simplification of red tape and creating development opportunities for small and medium enterprises.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. We create opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We do so by providing financing to help businesses employ more people and supply essential services, by mobilizing capital from others, and by delivering advisory services to ensure sustainable development. In a time of global economic uncertainty, our new investments climbed to a record $18 billion in fiscal 2010. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
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