Empowering Women Entrepreneurs in Kauma: Dragon’s Den Cohort 2 Takes Off!

We are thrilled to announce the successful launch of the MALYAF26DD Women Dragon’s Den 2026 Cohort 2 project! In partnership with our donor, the Young Achiever’s Foundation officially kicked off this initiative on 1st July 2026, and we are delighted to report that everything is progressing wonderfully.

The journey began with a highly successful sensitization campaign on 24th and 25th June 2026, which generated tremendous interest from the community. A total of 128 women registered for the project, from which 60 were selected to participate in the core programme. In response to overwhelming demand, we also welcomed an additional 5 women to attend the training sessions on a non-competitive basis, bringing our total number of trainees to 65 enthusiastic entrepreneurs.

All start-up activities have been completed on schedule. We conducted staff induction on 1st July, trainers induction on 3rd July, and a dedicated safeguarding induction on 5th July to ensure the highest standards of safety and protection for all participants. The actual business and life skills training commenced on 11th July and is currently ongoing, with participants showing great engagement and commitment.

In a remarkable development, we invited the ward councillor to our safeguarding induction, where we shared that women from Cohort 1 who did not receive YAF grants had successfully obtained support from the Constituency Development Fund. Encouraged by this, the councillor advised our 65 trainees to form 10 groups with proper leadership structures, which we have facilitated. The list has been submitted to him for recommendation to the Malawi Enterprise Development Fund for additional women empowerment support. We are keeping our fingers crossed and hopeful for positive outcomes.

We remain committed to empowering these women with the business skills, financial literacy, and confidence they need to grow their enterprises and transform their lives. Stay tuned for more updates as the project progresses!