More than 1,000 women entrepreneurs participated in the initiatives called “My bathroom, my kitchen, my pride”, and “My happy smile” of the Fundación Paraguaya, which foster the entrepreneurial spirit and resilience of Paraguayan women as a key factor to improve the life quality of their families. Both initiatives have the support of the CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, through its Social Innovation Department.

The goal is to encourage women by allowing them to see their vulnerabilities and the path they can take to overcome them and transform their realities, set achievable goals such as achieving modern and healthy bathrooms and kitchens, as well as healthy teeth.

Self-management is the key to reaching the goals, where the Women’s Committees and the participating families must do things and generate resources to overcome the challenges posed in each of these initiatives, raised by the organizers in a competition or contest format. The Fundación Paraguaya supports women throughout the process.

In that sense, motivated by the thought of getting an award and improving their quality of life, an enterprising woman, accompanied by her family and her partners of the Women’s Committee of the Fundación Paraguaya, join efforts to have their bathrooms in good conditions, with a cistern, toilet, water, and with decent floor and walls; or a large, elevated, ventilated kitchen with gas or electric stoves, well lit and above all, clean. The same happens with “My happy smile” contest, which promotes awareness about the need to improve oral health.

“My bathroom, my kitchen, my pride” contest is being carried out for the sixth time this year, while it is the fourth time for “My happy smile” contest. In the bathroom category, the winner was Aniceta Díaz Garcete, a client of the city of San Juan Nepomuceno of the “Nuevo Horizonte” Committee; in the kitchen category, Analía Balbuena, from the city of Mariano Roque Alonso, belonging to the “Kuña Rory” Committee was the winner. Meanwhile, for “My happy smile” contest, Karina Elizabeth López, also from Mariano Roque Alonso, was the winner, she belongs to the “Mujeres Unidas” Committee.

Both, the winning clients and their respective committees have money deposited in their savings banks as a prize, but without a doubt, the main prize of it all is the satisfaction of having helped to substantially improve the quality of life of a family. Both contests had national coverage and representatives from all departments.