"New Day For Women" Program- Nicaragua
PeaceJourney-PeaceSpa Presents "New Day For Women" Program
Global Micro-Lending Program Creating Self Sustaining Opportunities for Women and Families
Thank you for purchasing with us. You are helping us support women of every culture,
in ways that help them help themselves and their families.
The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades.
Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001 saw the Sandinista defeated, but voting in 2006 announced the return of former Sandinista President Daniel Ortega Saavedra.
Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt. However, Nicaragua has widespread underemployment, one of the highest degrees of income inequality in the world, and the third lowest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, annual GDP growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs, forcing Nicaragua to rely on international economic assistance to meet fiscal and debt financing obligations.
In early 2004, Nicaragua secured some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) iniative, and in October 2007, the IMF approved a new poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) program that should creat fiscal space for social spending and investment. The continuity of a relationship with the IMF reinforces donor confidence, despite private sector concerns surronding Ortega, which has dampened investment. The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opprtunities for man argicultural and manufactured goods. Energy shortages fueled by high oil proces, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth.
current situation: Nicaragua has undergone a very significant tranformation from a nation torn by civil war to a re-emerging democracy where the foundations for economic growth and sustainable development are being laid.
Global Micro-Lending Program Creating Self Sustaining Opportunities for Women and Families
Thank you for purchasing with us. You are helping us support women of every culture,
in ways that help them help themselves and their families.
Odalia del Carmen Treminio Ruiz
Odalia's Story:
Ms. Odalia del Carmen Treminio Ruiz is 36 years old, single, living in Nicaragua, and has 3 children who all study. Ms. Odalia's business is buying and selling clothing. She began this business more than 4 years ago out of the necessity to provide a source of income for her family. Mrs. Odalia's intention is to provide her customers with the highest quality of clothing. It is for this reason that she asks for a loan, which is specifically intentioned for labor capital. She travels to Managua to search for the highest quality clothing, and her dream is to improve her business each day to completely satisfy her customers.
The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades.
Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001 saw the Sandinista defeated, but voting in 2006 announced the return of former Sandinista President Daniel Ortega Saavedra.
Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt. However, Nicaragua has widespread underemployment, one of the highest degrees of income inequality in the world, and the third lowest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, annual GDP growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs, forcing Nicaragua to rely on international economic assistance to meet fiscal and debt financing obligations.
In early 2004, Nicaragua secured some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) iniative, and in October 2007, the IMF approved a new poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) program that should creat fiscal space for social spending and investment. The continuity of a relationship with the IMF reinforces donor confidence, despite private sector concerns surronding Ortega, which has dampened investment. The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opprtunities for man argicultural and manufactured goods. Energy shortages fueled by high oil proces, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth.
current situation: Nicaragua has undergone a very significant tranformation from a nation torn by civil war to a re-emerging democracy where the foundations for economic growth and sustainable development are being laid.
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