Key points
With support from Citi Foundation, NESsT launches the Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative to improve financial inclusion for Black people in Brazil.
Afro-Brazilians make up half of the country’s population but are overrepresented in the country’s low-income and unemployed communities.
The Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative is a multi-year project that provides funding and business assistance to impact-driven enterprises creating employment opportunities for Black people, helping them to access more capital to scale their businesses.
In Brazil, Black people make up more than half of the country’s population but are overrepresented in the country’s low-income and unemployed communities.
Structural and institutional racial inequities are especially visible in the labor market: 67% of Afro-Brazilians do not have formal jobs, and recent research shows as only 4.7% of executives among the country's 500 largest companies are Black.
These disparities become more apparent when a gender lens is applied – on average, Black women in Brazil earn 71% less than White men.
Helena Edir, Maré de Sabores Co-Founder and Co-CEO
Social innovation is a significant engine for economic growth and social inclusion in Brazil, with the potential to generate transformative impact on Black communities.
As racial wealth gaps increase, social entrepreneurship and small business development emerge as important vehicles in advancing financial participation for Black communities, providing decent job opportunities for Afro-Brazilians who have historically been underrepresented as founders, business leaders, and in the labor market.
“Despite their demonstrating significant contribution to addressing wealth inequalities and stimulating local economies, many Black-owned businesses are stymied from reaching their full potential due to disparities in access to financial resources; black businesses are subject to higher interest rates relative to their non-Black counterparts and are more likely to be denied loans,” says Loïc Comolli NESsT Co-CEO.
To address these systemic racial inequities, NESsT launched the Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative to improve financial inclusion for Black people in Brazil, with support from Citi Foundation.
The Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative provides funding and business assistance to impact-driven enterprises creating employment opportunities for Black people, helping them to access more capital and scale their businesses.
Four existing NESsT Brazil enterprises will be joining the Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative, including Maré de Sabores, Coletivo Aprendiz, Instituto Aliança, and Movimento Black Money. These initiatives offer job training, counseling, and placement services to the Black community. Together, they are already sustaining more than one thousand quality jobs for Brazilians of Afro-descent.
In addition, NESsT's Racial Equity Entrepreneurship Initiative will also identify and invite two additional enterprises that provide employment opportunities to Black individuals from low income backgrounds to join the portfolio.
“To kickoff the program, NESsT is forming a Racial Equity Committee consisting of Black professionals with relevant business experience in areas including credit access, operations, finance, and human resources,” shared Renata Truzzi, NESsT Brazil Director.
About NESsT
NESsT invests in high-impact, high-growth small businesses in emerging markets with growing economies but persistent inequality. NESsT operates two businesses: 1- Impact funds that provide debt financing to small and growing businesses; and 2- Incubators that accelerate early-stage enterprises towards investment readiness.
Since 1997, NESsT has invested over $24M and incubated and financed 223 enterprises sustaining more than 77,000 formal jobs targeting vulnerable women, at-risk youth, smallholder farmers, and minorities. To date, our organization has improved the lives of close to one million people.
NESsT targets employment creation in the following areas: Climate change through regenerative agriculture, circular economy, and green jobs; Gender equity through the economic empowerment of women; and Workforce development through the diversity and inclusion of underserved talent.
About Citi Foundation
The Citi Foundation works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities around the world. We invest in efforts that increase financial inclusion, catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagine approaches to building economically vibrant communities. The Citi Foundation's "More than Philanthropy" approach deploys the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfill our mission and drive thought leadership and innovation. For more information, visit www.citifoundation.com.