This division of Civil Society is based on the economic area in which the citizens of this country are working. Its main focus includes agriculture, mining, and other natural resource industries, and the secondary focus covers manufacturing, engineering, and construction. The Economic sector is made up of mostly grass-root and per-urban membership organizations that are involved in entrepreneurial skills training and referrals to micro-finance institutions for project start-up financing. The sector is operating in an economically depressed environment. The organizations have been depending on external funding for their activities, but most funding partners had shifted their focus to governance and democracy in the past decade. There has not been any self-sustenance strategy over the years for some of the organisations. The organisations that had self-sustenance strategies in place operate income-generating projects in conference facilities and accommodation service provision and these have not been generating enough to finance their programs due to competition and dilapidation of the facilities. The trained entrepreneurs are failing to secure loans as the interest rates of the micro-finance institutions are high and prohibitive for grass root and peri-urban people.

Share