What is Impact?
by Jessica Markwood, Director of Women’s Entrepreneurship Programs
January 5, 2024
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! It’s the time of the year when the Flint team is busy wrapping up our 2023 work and compiling data for our Impact Report.
But what is impact?
Every Flint program partner agrees to well-defined reporting and data collection as a part of our ongoing partnership. We gather diverse data from each partner program to 1) assess effectiveness and reach, and 2) highlight improvement opportunities for the coming year.
Regular reports include the following data:
Number of participants
Number of jobs created
Number of people who benefit from the activities of our training participants
Stories of impact (you can see in our Friday Four newsletter!)
Additionally, each program has specific metrics tracked throughout the year to measure success. We also prioritize input from our partners and beneficiaries to ensure that local problem-solvers are always guiding our work.
So what does that look like?
1
Impact in Thriving Skills
In Thriving Skills, students complete assessments throughout the program, as well as one "Most Significant Change" essay before graduation. Key data points include:
What are your goals and how are you pursuing them?
Have you been employed or received an internship in the past 6 months?
What has been the significance of this program for you?
This impact is evident in students like 19-year-old Roberto, who participated in the Thriving Skills program at Jovenes en Camino (JEC) in El Zamorano, Honduras.
“I thank God for the Flint Global Thriving Skills program, which has helped me a lot in various aspects of my life. First, in my personality – I am more sociable and I have more empathy with people. Regarding finances, saving has been very significant for me. I am in the process of opening a bank account and I am creating the habit of saving. Through the program I have been able to understand how to get around the district on public transportation.
Thanks to the program and JEC, I learned how to commute daily to the San Juan Bosco vocational training center where I trained as a Barber technician. I feel very grateful for helping me prepare in a technical workshop in the area that I like and supporting my talents. This has kept me motivated and allowed me to move toward making my dream of one day leaving the foundation with the tools for life come true.”
JEC supported Roberto in launching his on-campus hair-cutting business, catering to the foundation's youngest children. Little by little, he saves and prepares for an independent venture, attributing his clear vision of the future to Thriving Skills.
In November 2023, JEC's in-depth program graduated 16 students, directly impacting 54 peers and around 67 relatives. Fourteen of these students have already worked partial or full-time jobs or internships, paving the way for a secure lifelong income that will break the cycles of poverty and abandonment in their communities.
Our Thriving Skills program operates with
6 partners in 3 countries.
2
Impact in Entrepreneurship
In our entrepreneurship programs, we survey participants at the time of training and six months after the training. As often as we are able we also follow up at one-year intervals. Key questions we ask are:
How has your business changed?
How has your income changed?
Have you been able to employ anyone else?
How has your access to necessities (shelter, food, healthcare, education) changed?
In South Sudan, our partner AWACE shares monthly reports that include quantitative data, and also stories like Rebecca's reflections on launching a business in an internally displaced people's (IDP) camp.
“I now consider myself a job creator for myself and other women. My tea shop is generating income and my savings are kept in our VSLA group savings box monthly. I am now paying myself and other women who are helping my business. The follow-up business coaching has helped me to add to my business with cake making, and this innovation has also increased my income. May God bless you Flint Global and AWACE for raising our hope again from the IDP camp."
Rebecca's story exemplifies the broader impact of our Growth Mindset, Practical Business Skills, and VSLA training, transforming women's self-perception and capacity to generate income. And she’s not alone.
Reports show that we trained 683 participants in South Sudan, affecting 3,757 people. 247 women in 7 communities saved nearly $92,000, fostering economic growth in female entrepreneurship, adaptive farming, and education.
Our entrepreneurship program operates with
9 partners in 6 countries.
3
Impact in Adaptive Farming
Our Adaptive Farming program, often running alongside entrepreneurship efforts, gathers data through surveys and follow-up interviews. Data specific to agriculture includes:
How many participants have trained others?
How many active demonstration plots are there?
How has your crop yield changed from the last harvest?
This approach provides insight into the generational impact of our work in Sierra Leone.
Flint's long-term collaboration with the Muwasa Farming Association (MFA) involves extensive training in adaptive farming and agribusiness. Because of a dedicated investment in program leaders Joe, Jenneh, and James, MFA now successfully cultivates ginger as a cash crop.
This year, the abundant ginger crop will be sold to female entrepreneurs in Sierra Leone's capital, providing sustained income and stability for even more families.
In 2024, MFA will be able to hire its first employee to expand adaptive farming training in their community. Though a concentrated and gradual process, this deep, sustained approach yields generational and impactful results that extend beyond MFA’s community.
In 2023, 15 program participants will experience a 5-6 times increase in financial income from 8 businesses that will impact 550 others in the Bauya community. These farming families now have access to new opportunities, like it did for one child preparing to be the first in their family to attend university.
Our Adaptive Farming program operates with
5 partners in 5 countries.
We strive for impact, and numbers are our compass, guiding us to scale our work efficiently and make every dollar count. We will continue measuring our impact in the most honest, informative, and ethical ways that we can.
Behind each figure lies a story—a person, a family, a changemaker like you, dedicated to creating a better world.
Everyone contributes to making a difference, and we're privileged to play a role in this collective effort that brings flourishing to so many lives.
