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The International Business Development Internship
Leadership Initiatives is working to end extreme poverty in Northern Nigeria through entrepreneurship and innovation. As part of the International Business & Development Program, Leadership Initiatives identifies small business owners who live under $1.90 a day, have little formal business education, and are struggling to provide for their family’s basic needs.
Once business owners have completed training, Leadership Initiatives pairs International Business & Development Interns with a business partner and business mentor. Interns are given the opportunity to help tackle major issues at the grassroots level by working directly with small business owners to support and incubate local entrepreneurs. Students will work with Leadership Initiatives staff over the course of nine months to provide income-generating solutions that focus on food supply, women empowerment, environment and sustainability, personal care, and mobility.
The International Business & Development Internship aims to introduce interns to the complexities and challenges of running a small business and working within community development. Interns will gain an understanding of the unwavering commitment, focus, and determination required to work within this field. From working with interns, local business owners will have new knowledge of entrepreneurial skills they need to create business opportunities that will contribute to socio-economic development and significantly transform their lives.
Our Internship Team
CLICK EACH MEMBER TO LEARN MORE.
Rohan Soma
Fairfax High School
Class of 2025
Rohan Soma is a sophomore at Fairfax High School. He is a dedicated and hardworking student that loves learning in a variety of subjects. Rohan is also enrolled in many Advancement Placement and honors courses.
Rohan enjoys reading and spending time with friends and family. At school, he participates in clubs like Science Olympiad and CSHS. Additionally, he volunteers with a non-profit organization that aims to provide free tutoring services to people who may not have access to higher education.
Rohan is thrilled to be participating in the Business and Development Internship this school year as he will gain experience in a field that he is passionate about. Additionally, he looks forward to helping people in need by implementing his ideas to make them more successful. In the future, he hopes to pursue computer science and business.
Minh-Quan Le
Fairfax High school
Class of 2025
I'm Minh-Quan Le but my friends call me Nathan. I'm a sophomore at Fairfax High School and am enrolled for all honors as well as 2 AP courses.
I enjoy playing lacrosse, track, practicing flute, and being active. At school I'm one of the best flutes in the band as well as a member of AYPO.
I'm excited to be participating in the International Business and Development Internship this year. I love helping people out when they need it and I think that by being in this internship I could gain lots of experience. With this program I think I could hone my skills and broaden my horizons in regards to the working world.
Matthew Seo
Fairfax High School
Class of 2025
Matthew Seo is a sophomore at Fairfax High School. Matthew Seo is an excellent honor student with good grades and hard work. He has enrolled in two Advanced Placement classes.
Matthew Seo enjoys golfing and playing the cello. He has entered many different cello competitions. Matthew Seo also is planning on going out to competitions for golf. During his free time, Matthew enjoys building and making new things.
Matthew Seo is excited to participate in the school year's business and development internship. He loves learning about how businesses strive and the competition between many companies. Using the skills he will learn from this experience, Matthew will work in the business field.
Timothy Park
Fairfax High School
Class of 2025
Timothy Park is a current sophomore at Fairfax Highschool. He is an honor roll student taking all honors and 2 Advanced Placement courses this year. In addition, he has also has taken 1 Advanced Placement course. In his free time, he enjoys going to the gym and is interested in computer science which he will likely pursue further education for.
Our Business Partner
Aminu Saleh
Business Statistics
Mr.Saleh’s business has been open for 3 years now.
Mr.Saleh enjoys watching movies and soccer.
Mr.Saleh’s typical day starts with an early morning prayer and then spending time with his family.
Aminu Saleh
About Aminu
Mr.Saleh has opened his welding business for 3 years now. His father worked very hard and taught him much of what he knows which inspired him to form this business.
Mr.Saleh’s goal for the business is to expand to multiple sites and hire more employees to help him assist customers. Additionally, he is eager to learn modern welding techniques that will help him make more income and enable him to further his education.
Aminu Saleh
Community Impact
Mr.Saleh has 2 employees paid based on commission and has 9 apprentices. He aims to train young men in his area with useful and marketable skills. He hopes to hire even more people to expand his business.
Mr.Saleh is a well-known welder in his community and assists his community by offering doors and windows at an affordable rate. This offers much more protection, especially in places where robberies are frequent.
Aminu Saleh
Our Partnership
By working with us to create advertising material, financial plans, and other business necessities, he believes that he can expand the business.
By helping Mr.Saleh increase profits, he can further his education and satisfy his customers' needs.
Our Approach
FINANCIAL TRACKING
Financially literate entrepreneurs make growth-oriented financial and economic decisions for their savings, borrowing, and investments. Our team is working with Isiyaka Sa’ad to create an effective financial tracking system for his business finances, receipts, and daily costs.
OUR ADVERTISING
Our team identified target markets and key demographics to create a customer acquisition plan. We are working with Isiyaka Sa’ad to redesign his brand and create effective marketing campaigns.
BUSINESS IMPROVEMENTS
Steady growth is a critical component of creating self-sustaining communities. Our team is working to identify key areas of opportunity for Isiyaka Sa’ad and design solutions with grant money to improve his business to foster growth.
Our Fundraising
$762 RAISED
$238 NEEDED
$1000 GOAL
Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced some of the highest growth rates globally over the past 10 years. While this means that people in these nations have become more optimistic about their social and economic future, the region continues to face a myriad of historical problems. In order to continue steady growth and achieve a future of equitable conditions in the region, our International Internship Program team seeks to build stronger communities from the grassroots level through fundraising for community development.
Funds raised are used to implement community-based education programs, pay staff to run the operations on-site, and invest in training for local leaders. Leadership Initiatives uses fundraised money to develop a network of support for actionable change and accountability between our team, the Leadership Initiatives staff, and the community stakeholders we work with.
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