Arsheen Dhalla has been busy doing remarkable work in Zanzibar through the Daraja Foundation. Daraja means bridge in Swahili. During one of her infrequent visits to Calgary, I had the pleasure to sit down with her and listen to her story. There are many stories to tell. For the second video in the series, we decided to focus on Amina’s business story.
The first time Arsheen traveled to Zanzibar in this capacity, her work primarily focused on an orphanage and a local hospital. From that early time, Daraja concentrated on empowerment, education, and sustainability in their projects.
In the last video we talked about a raising chickens and organic farm run by students. What happens when they graduate?
Amina’s Business Start-Up Story
After leaving the orphanage at 18 years of age, Amina worked very hard at a hotel. That inspired her to start her own business, so she approached Daraja for some start-up support. This support included business planning and coaching. The venture also included a micro-loan sponsored by us here at Sunwapta.
Leadership isn’t about how big you make yourself – it is about how much you lift up others. At its heart, business is about creating value and impact for other people. I see a significant influence in the future for Daraja and entrepreneurs like Amina.
We hope to get a chance to update you on how Amina and her business venture progresses over the coming months and years.
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I encourage you to watch the entire video to hear Amina’s story directly from Arsheen.
Helping Out at Daraja
If you found this story inspirational, you can find more at the Daraja Foundation website. Like all non-profits, they survive off of donations in both time (volunteer information) and money (donate here).
