Malena de Montis, Nicaragua: Fodem/Cenzontle’s Economic Empowerment Programs for Women

Malena de Montis is founder and board member of WLP’s affiliate partner in Nicaragua, Fondo para el Desarrollo de la Mujer (Fodem)/Centro para la Participación Democrática y el Desarrollo (Cenzontle). Fodem/Cenzontle is a non-governmental organization which seeks to support the economic and political empowerment of women with scarce resources through financial, business, and citizenship programs which have earned them the Central American award for Best Practice from INTERCAMBIO.

Malena is also founder and member of the National Women’s Coalition in Nicaragua, and served as Latin American Coordinator of the Women’s Political Network (1995-2000) which was launched at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. At present she is actively involved in the structural organization of the Women´s Autonomous Movement in Nicaragua.

Program Associate Siobhán Hayes spoke with Malena de Montis about women’s economic position in Nicaragua and Fodem/Cenzontle’s microcredit programs for women’s empowerment.

Please describe the current economic situation for women in Nicaragua:

Ms. de Montis: Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in Latin America. Nearly 80% of its population lives on less than two dollars a day. Women’s economic participation and contribution to the household income has increased in the last decades mainly because of wars, urbanization, internal and external migration, demand for women’s labor in the maquilas, crisis in the formal economic sector, and women’s increased capacity to generate income in the informal sector. Women head 30% of homes in rural areas and 44% of homes in urban areas. These households are more economically vulnerable and the majority of them are poor, with only a single income to cover basic needs. This, in a country with a low level of democratic rule of law, where violence against women and children is increasing, and where just recently therapeutic abortion was abolished, which was legal in Nicaragua for more than 150 years.

How does microcredit benefit women in Nicaragua?

Ms. de Montis: Nicaraguan women constitute the majority of clients of micro-financiers. However, they only receive 21% of the total amount of money given. On average, men receive 15,175 córdobas (806 USD) and women receive 6,585 córdobas (349 USD). In addition, most of the activities that women undertake reinforce traditional roles such as preparing food, sewing, and other services. Many women’s activities are subsistence and generate minor profits. Women need microcredit, savings programs, insurance, and other financial services in Nicaragua. They also need new knowledge, skills, and abilities to improve the quality of their products, to increase and strengthen their markets, and to develop profitable economic activities.

Please talk about the importance of incorporating leadership and empowerment work with microcredit programs:

Ms. de Montis: Access to credit can lessen obstacles for women to gain economic and political empowerment when it is accompanied by other services including education, organizational support, technical assistance and other specialized services. Evidence indicates that benefits are diminished when the focus of programs is solely on financial sustainability. Microfinance strategies need to take into account gender differences, women’s rights, and leadership, and move beyond their emphasis on access to credit and payment of debts if they really want to play an important role in development. Their emphasis should be on developing programs which emphasize sustainable financial services with non financial services. They should define policies adapted to the needs and capabilities of particular groups and work together to establish alliances and to develop fairness in access to opportunities and resources. This includes not only paying special attention to women with limited resources, but implementing strategies to support women in the role of businesswomen and employers, with men as allies in challenging injustice and discrimination.

Can you explain Fodem/Cenzontle’s approach and experience with microfinance?

Ms. de Montis: Fodem/Cenzontle’s mission is to offer financial services to Nicaraguan women with the purpose of contributing to their economic and political empowerment through strengthening their self-esteem and leadership skills, promoting the growth of profitable and sustainable economic initiatives, and enhancing women’s organization and participation as citizens. Fodem/Cenzontle works in alliance with specialized institutions to offer the complementary services required for sustainable, democratic development for equality.

Fodem originated as a program of credit for Cenzontle, its "mother" organization, which also provided complementary research programs, enterprise development, and citizenship programs to contribute to the economic and political empowerment of women. Their approach is based in Feminist Popular Education which recognizes the condition of subordination that women face in different spheres of their lives.

Fodem/Cenzontle focuses on personal growth and the development of self-esteem, along with entrepreneurial skills required for growth of women’s economic initiatives and the development of the women’s movement for citizenship action. Fodem/Cenzontle has brought the gender and empowerment approach to more than 8,000 women in Nicaragua and has obtained financial sustainability, maintained growth of its portfolio, expanded to new areas, carried out training projects, and provided technical assistance for the benefit of its clients.