Building a business in rural regions of the Kyrgyz Republic is not easy. Since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, the country has struggled economically. In the remote mountain village of Gulcha, Marina Gazina ran a small bakery, with big dreams to expand her business. Yet, she had limited resources and tools to grow the business beyond its current scale.

Mountain Societies Development Support Programme has a program for helping small entrepreneurs with promise and potential build their business. Three years ago, Marina was chosen by MSDSP to participate in training sessions, which introduced her to a world of new techniques and practices that built upon her own hands-on experience. She learned new baking technologies from expert bakers from the capital, Bishkek. In business training, she learned how to better plan, price and manage a grant of initial ingredients to successfully begin the expansion of her bakery. Since that initial training, Marina has expanded both her products and clientele.  She now provides meals for over 500 school children every day.

MSDSP embraces a philosophy of helping people to help themselves and encourages those they train to extend their knowledge further to helping others. Marina received more than just training in how to become a better baker and businesswoman. She also learned to train others and pass along her baking knowledge and business savvy. As a regional trainer in the training of trainers (TOT) program, Marina now runs classes for women in Alai in better baking techniques and business planning for a small fee. Marina’s expanded bakery and the success of the TOT program prompted her to hire three local assistants to help her in these endeavors, expanding even further the circle of economic opportunities for those in her community.

    

During her visit to the bakery, Evan observed “I walked through the doors into a large kitchen bustling with activity. As Marina laid out a delicious display of her baked goods, I noticed two young boys peering at us from an interior window. They were from the school where she supplies meals. Over hot coffee and blinis – thin pancakes wrapped around meat – Marina described her new line of wedding cakes.  It was great to hear about her successes and how she passes on her knowledge to other women in her community.”

The impact of MSDSP’s enterprise training has had a ripple effect with positive outcomes. Marina has been able to improve her income by expanding the business, while helping the local economy and satisfying market demand. That expansion enables her to supply local children with a healthy school meal. The training extended to others in villages around Gulcha provides work and learning opportunities for other women who also dream for success in business.

Of course, Marina has not stopped dreaming her big dreams. She plans to buy her shop so she can stop renting and have a truly sustainable business. With the training she received from MSDSP, fulfilling those dreams may not be far off.

The Mountain Societies Development Support Programme (MSDSP) was initiated by the Aga Khan Foundation in 2003 with the goal to improve living conditions in select mountain communities in the country. The MSDSP invests in rural infrastructure to help communities to establish economic opportunities and access basic health and education services. The program area includes the mountainous districts of Alai, Chong-Alai and Kara-Kulja in Osh Oblast, as well as Naryn and At-Bashy districts in Naryn Oblast, covering a total population of more than 320,000. By the end of 2009, MSDSP supported the construction and repair of more than 120 infrastructure projects, including kindergartens, irrigation canals and drinking water supply systems