Presented by ACC Business, a division of AT&T
Can you help promote peace through business? We think so.
It is widely acknowledged that economically stable societies have a much greater capacity for peace. Small business has always been the backbone of economic stability, and PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® believes that diversity is the key to the development and stability of business in emerging economies.
PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® is a business training and mentorship program for women entrepreneurs in Afghanistan and Rwanda. The program is in its 11th year and is implemented through three major components — In-Country Education, Leadership Development, and Pay It Forward — which combine to create a sustainable program to educate women, promote their business and leadership skills, build a strong public policy agenda in the women’s business community and to help build stable democracies.
The mission is to educate women economically, socially and politically. We begin with a 10-week business course in each country, holding classes in Kabul and Kigali. During the 10 weeks, and beyond, each woman is eMentored by a U.S. Business Woman in a like field. This will be our second year to execute three 5-day mini-courses designed to expand PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® experience into the Afghan provinces, beginning with Jalalabad, Mazar, and Herat.
Upon graduation, 15 women from Afghanistan and 15 from Rwanda are chosen to continue their training at Leadership Development in the United States. This includes a four-day intensive training with professors and American businesswomen, mentorship experience and culminates in the PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® Graduation Gala, July 15-26, 2019.
After the life-changing experience of Leadership Development, the women return to their countries to pay forward what they have learned. Many go on to establish their own nonprofit training centers, educate their employees and work in their communities as business leaders.
The PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® program has been active since 2006 in Rwanda and Afghanistan. Both of our alumnae associations are telling us that PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® is the most comprehensive training of its kind, and they replicate everything we do in their home countries.
Over the years, PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® has graduated almost 700 women and helped to create more than 16,000 jobs in their countries. In March 2017, our Afghan alumnae were instrumental in establishing the first Afghan Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industries. This historical organization was endorsed by the President of Afghanistan and the International Chamber of Commerce in Afghanistan. For the past two years, the First Lady of Afghanistan has hosted the PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® Class of 2017 and 2018 for their in-country graduation event.
Sandy Butler Buchanon, Sales Director for ACC Business, recently got involved with PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS®. “Throughout my career, mentoring women has been such a rewarding & inspiring experience for me. I truly believe that relationships matter. We can be more successful when we lift each other up, learn from each other, and grow together. I am incredibly inspired by the mission of PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® and am so excited to share experiences and skills with women in Afghanistan & Rwanda. ” If you’d like to learn more about ACC Business, Sandy Butler Buchanon, or her involvement with PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS®, please contact her at: sb4692@att.com.
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