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Esmira Mosquera with enterpreneurs in ADI communities

July 1, 2019

Accelerating Entrepreneurship in Afro-Colombian and Indigenous Communities

Esmirna Mosquera Uribe, GCL 2015 from Chocó Colombia, and Specialist on Entrepreneurship and Employment for the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM), works directly with Afro-descendant and Indigenous communities (ADI) in Colombia’s most vulnerable regions.  For the past ten years, Esmirna has taught entrepreneurship and business development in remote communities that have been adversely affected by the nation’s civil conflict, while helping to develop sustainable economic networks in order to lead socioeconomic development and progress in Colombia.

Alongside IOM and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Esmirna has helped spearhead the first Diversity and Inclusion Fair in Bogotá, Colombia.  Leaders from the most prominent companies in the country made a pledge to the “Gran Pacto Nacional por la Inclusión y la Diversidad,” which affirms that a commitment to diverse talent ensures greater innovation and efficiency, providing a solution to the challenges faced by the public and private sectors.

The challenges and opportunities to achieve a peaceful Colombia after a 55-year civil conflict are directly related to the accelerated implementation of a process of political, social, and economic inclusion of ADI populations.”  Fair participants had the opportunity to exchange ideas, obtain ancestral knowledge, and understand the development of new business opportunities for entrepreneurs from Chocó, Antioquia, Nariño, Cauca, Guaviare, La Guajira, Valle del Cauca, Bolívar, and Cundinamarca.

Source: GCL Alumni Network