Femmes d'Avenir

In the commune of Boukombé, in northwestern Benin, many young girls grow up in an environment where educational and professional opportunities remain limited. Family economic hardship, the weight of tradition, early marriage, and a lack of job prospects often make it difficult to envision a different future.

To address this reality, the NGO ANAN and the Beninese association Tikonna launched Femmes d'Avenir, a three-year project designed to support young women on a journey of personal growth, training, and economic empowerment. Each year, the initiative targets twenty girls aged 14 to 17 from the Boukombé commune, aiming to provide them with the practical tools to take charge of their futures and contribute to their communities' development.

The project's first year is dedicated to training. During school holidays, participants take part in discussion and exchange sessions covering topics such as girls' rights, self-determination, the prevention of early marriage and seasonal migration, and the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and resource management.

The girls are guided to analyse their local area's needs and design small-scale economic activities capable of meeting the community's real needs. At the end of this phase, the most promising ideas are selected for further development in the following years.

In the second year, participants have the opportunity to turn their projects into concrete activities. With small amounts of start-up capital and ongoing support from the Tikonna association, they launch initiatives in sectors such as handicrafts, agro-processing, sewing, agricultural production, and other activities suited to the local context. Alongside financial support, they benefit from ongoing guidance that helps them acquire the organisational, managerial and entrepreneurial skills essential for developing their activities.

The project's final year focuses on consolidating initiatives already underway. Young women receive support in reinvesting their profits, planning their business activities, and developing skills related to female leadership and cooperation. Particular attention is paid to creating mutual support networks among participants, ensuring they can continue helping one another even after the programme ends. A final showcase event dedicated to these young entrepreneurs also highlights their achievements and strengthens ties with the local community.

The project is the result of a partnership between the NGO ANAN, responsible for design, monitoring and resource mobilisation, and Tikonna, a local association working directly on the ground to manage participant selection, training and day-to-day support. This synergy combines a long-term vision with deep knowledge of the local context, ensuring an intervention that truly meets the needs of the young women and their families.

«When a young woman gains access to knowledge, tools and opportunities, it is not just her own life that changes: the entire community around her grows too.»

Over three years, Femmes d'Avenir will engage sixty young women and help many of them launch sustainable economic activities. The project's value extends far beyond the numbers: it is about offering these young women the chance to gain confidence, develop skills, build positive connections and envision a future they shape themselves.

For us, investing in young women means investing in the future of communities. Because when a young woman gains access to knowledge, tools and opportunities, it is not just her own life that changes: the entire community around her develops and thrives.