In June 2018, Fundación Eléutera competed in Atlas Network's Latin America Think Tank Shark Tank competition with its project, "Reducing Bureaucracy Reduces Poverty and Violence." Through its implementation, this project is breaking down barriers for entrepreneurs in Honduras.
This project utilizes an online platform — www.miempresaenlinea.org — that helps would-be entrepreneurs start their own businesses. This online platform has helped to reduce the number of days to get businesses approved from 7 days down to one, and it has reduced the cost of registering from $800 to $15 USD in a country with a 2017 GDP per capita of $2,480.
“Honduras is a country that has very little data that can give a roadmap and a diagnosis of what is being done,” said Elena Toledo, CEO of Fundación Eléutera. “This is why studies such as the World Bank’s Doing Business Index is a good tool for Fundación Eléutera.”
Fundación Eléutera plans to measure its progress through improved rankings in the Doing Business Index, which also provides a clear picture for where Fundación Eléutera can expand its work to improve economic freedom in Honduras.
“At Fundación Eléutera we believe that free enterprise and simplification for the creation of new companies is the most sustainable alternative for the reduction of poverty and violence,” said Toledo. “We see it every day with people who benefit from the knowledge we share with them on the platform. The approval of a business is reduced from 7 days to 1 day, and it is reduced from $800 to $15 USD. The creation of their own company gives back dignity to the human being, and we look for the simplest ways so that everyone can do it and prosper as a society.”
Projects such as this one are empowering everyday people with the knowledge they need to end generational poverty and violence in order to create a brighter future for themselves and Honduras.
Fundación Eléutera received a grant from Atlas Network in support of this project. Click here to learn more about grant opportunities.
