HelpAge Cambodia works with Older People’s Associations (OPA) to ensure that older people in extreme poverty have the skills the means to increase their income and improve their welfare. Small  business  training  gives  the  opportunity to  the  poorest  families to start  their  own profitable business.

Small business training is an income generation programme supported by Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). It equips OPA members, especially those from poor households with older members, with marketing skills, business operation competences, inputs and assets to increase their income and basic livelihood.

In 2014, 120 selected households (90 women and 30 men with an average age of 55 years) among the OPA members in Battambang Province, were trained in livelihood skills and received livelihood assets to run their small businesses. Based on the Success Case Replication End of Project Review Survey in December 2014, 54% of the beneficiaries (120 beneficiaries) reported increased profits, 34% reported no profit nor loss and 4% reported a reduction in profit due to disease to plants and animals and the flooding that affected this region. Those who increased their profits were considered to be successful in their business and their activities were visited by other older persons and community members to learn from the model.

 The trainee and OPA are provided a manual on applying the Success Case Replication (SCR) approach which is a simple method of village-based informal apprenticeships. This involves local small business owners imparting their business skills and knowledge to a group of trainees through informal methods as well as contribution to the initial capital to start a small business. Small business activity gives the opportunity to the poorest families to start their own business.

The small business activities in this programme are:

• Handcrafts
• Tailor-made clothes
• Grocery sales
• Bicycle repairs
• Animal husbandry for pig, chicken and duck raising