Trifinio Youth: New Training and Seed Capital Opportunity for Enterprises in the Dry Corridor

• The ESCALAR project opens its 3rd call to access seed capital and training, an initiative aimed at strengthening innovative and sustainable rural businesses in the face of climate change.

With the goal of training entrepreneurial leaders in the Trifinio region—which includes El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras—the ESCALAR project invites enthusiastic men and women between the ages of 18 and 29 to develop agribusinesses based on agricultural innovations that promote climate adaptation.

In collaboration with Swedish Cooperation and the Trinational Commission of the Trifinio Plan, CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) officially launches the third ESCALAR call—Youth for Rural Enterprises with Seed Capital in the Central American Dry Corridor—from January 24, 2025, to February 16, 2025.

The initiative aims to promote rural enterprises offering innovative solutions to climate change and is targeted at young people residing in municipalities within the Central American Dry Corridor in the Trifinio region.

This call is implemented in collaboration with key institutions such as the Eastern University Center of the University of San Carlos (CUNORI) in Guatemala; the Foundation for Rural Business Development (FUNDER) in Honduras; and the Center for Micro and Small Business Development (CDMYPE – UNICAES) at the Catholic University of El Salvador.

This is the third call of its kind within the framework of the ESCALAR project, focused on climate adaptation solutions to strengthen resilience and reduce migration in the Central American Dry Corridor.

The call is open to enterprises related to coffee, staple grains, livestock, bio-inputs, water harvesting, clonal coffee gardens, agri-tech, agroforestry nurseries, and silvopastoral practices.

Benefits of Participation:

• Free training in entrepreneurship and agricultural innovations for climate adaptation.
• Guidance on developing business proposals.
• Access to non-repayable seed capital, with amounts of up to $3,000 USD.
• Specialized mentoring and advisory services to strengthen businesses.

Requirements for Application:

• Reside in the municipalities of: Guatemala: Esquipulas, Chiquimula, Concepción Las Minas, Olopa, Agua Blanca, Santa Catarina Mita, and Asunción Mita. Honduras: Copán Ruinas, Santa Rita, La Labor, Sinuapa, Sensenti, Lucerna, Concepción, Santa Fe, San Marcos de Ocotepeque, and Fraternidad. El Salvador: Candelaria de la Frontera, Metapán, Santiago de la Frontera, San Antonio Pajonal, and La Palma.
• Be between 18 and 29 years old.
• Have a business idea related to coffee, staple grains, livestock, bio-inputs, water harvesting, clonal coffee gardens, agri-tech, agroforestry nurseries, or silvopastoral practices.

Interested individuals must register online and participate in training workshops to develop business proposals, acquiring key tools to present their projects effectively.

Ricardo Padrón, entrepreneurship and innovation specialist at CATIE and the ESCALAR project, emphasized that the strategy of supporting young people in developing enterprises linked to agricultural innovations for adaptation has been highly successful, not only in achieving more resilient livelihoods but also in fostering leadership and a sense of belonging among young people to help their communities.

Selected participants will receive training in business models, finance, and marketing, as well as access to a regional network of business opportunities. The comprehensive support aims to ensure the long-term sustainability of the projects.

The third call aspires to benefit at least 15 youth-led enterprises in this round.

A Tangible Impact

The first two ESCALAR calls demonstrated significant impact, training over 270 young people and funding 41 enterprises with a total of $135,000 USD in non-repayable seed capital. This funding enabled improvements in productive infrastructure, acquisition of specialized machinery, and purchase of essential raw materials to develop sustainable agribusinesses linked to climate adaptation innovations.

Amílcar Aguilar, field coordinator of the ESCALAR project, stated that the results obtained in the first two calls have been positively evaluated by project partners and direct beneficiaries, who are the participating young people.

"The experience of these two ESCALAR-Youth calls has shown that more time is needed for the proper allocation of seed capital and mentoring processes. Likewise, the ESCALAR mid-term evaluation considers it essential to continue working with youth in the region through this Entrepreneurship Call," said Aguilar.

The goal of ESCALAR is to strengthen livelihoods and develop climate-resilient productive systems through the application of agricultural innovations for climate adaptation.

For more information and registration, visit the official ESCALAR website: https://escalar.catie.ac.cr/