Key Issues Addressed by Savings Start

• Lack of incentive to save money - without an incentive to save money workers often choose to consume their excess income in a less than sustainable manner.
• Risk inherent in business - starting or expanding a business is often impeded with a lack of knowledge and funds. This prevents many sound business ideas from contributing to the economic base of a community.

Nicaraguan fishermen are often dependent on the season and other factors that can limit their only income source.

• The cyclical nature of tourism and real estate markets – the income of many local residents may vary from year to year and may also vary between the seasons of investment activity and tourism. Having an intermittent and irregular income stream makes planning and maintenance of regular payments difficult. This problem is addressed through training and help with planning.
• One time income - local residents selling real estate and receiving often just one large sum of money do not have the money management expertise to enable them to make decisions with long term vision.

Financial Literacy and Business Training

Savings Start participants receive training on a variety of relevant topics including:

• Business plan preparation
• Budgeting
• Personal banking
• Planning and risk assessmen