The month of May 2019 has started with a lot of benefits to people living in Nakivale Refugee Settlement. This follows the opening of the first ever Promise Hub in the world. The Hub, which is circular in shape, covers a size of 165 sqm and it is made of 20.000 plastic bottles in Nakivale.
Promise Hub will be creating 1 Billion new jobs within the next 30 years in communities around the world. It’s a massive promise, and it starts right here, right now.
It will provide a center for computer training, but above all, it will serve as an entrepreneurial hub for the residents.
At Promise Hub, we believe in empowering locals to live sustainable lives. We believe that instead of people migrating to opportunities, Promise Hub will migrate opportunities to people.
We are establishing “Hubs”, which are incubators where individuals can discover their individual passions and talents, develop their skills and build successful businesses, all over the world in communities where individuals want to rise!
And they’ve chosen Nakivale, Uganda, to be the home of their first Promise Hub on the planet.
Promise Hub provides to their members, also known as Promise Hub Heroes, everything they need to create local and online jobs to generate income, strengthen their local community and ensure the Hub’s financial independence.
Promise Hub Heroes learn, share and fine-tune their project ideas with the help of 24/7 access to the internet via Airtel thanks to our partnership with NetHope, a range of hardware tools at the Hub as well as encouragement from a well-trained local impact team of young entrepreneurs and international online mentors.
There are several game changers Promise Hub provides. The Promise Hub Express, a Speedy Premium Shipping Service, empowered by MyMalls in collaboration with DHL Global which allows the Promise Hub heroes to sell and ship their products to the US straight out of Nakivale.
Throughout 2019 an online marketplace will be launched and a digital wallet which enables all Promise Hub members to have access to financial services will be implemented.
“For me, Promise Hub can be the most efficient solution to tackling the poverty felt in many African countries affected by war or violence” says Patrick Muvunga Trickpa, leader of the Promise Hub in Nakivale. “When jobs are scarce, the most viable solution is to create your own job, to become an entrepreneur. But entrepreneurs in Nakivale often face challenges such as internet access to reach outside markets or sell products, sending products outside and an inability to receive online payments. Promise Hub solves all of these challenges and by providing entrepreneurs in the refugee settlement the ability to produce and sell their products everywhere in the world, our model benefits the refugees and improves the local economy,” added Muvunga, who came to Nakivale in 2010 after fleeing war in the DR Congo.
