The Challenge:

Over the past decade, and especially since the 2017 hurricane season, Puerto Rico’s population has experienced a significant decrease as their inhabitants move to mainland U.S. for better opportunities.   

How is Hispanic Federation Helping?

We are channeling our efforts with both private and public sectors to create jobs, rebuild the economy, and promote sustainable business growth throughout the island.

Who Are We Helping?

PopTiendas Small Business Initiative Project (Island-wide) 

To address the needs of small businesses, HF launched a major initiative with the Coca-Cola Company and Prudential Financial Inc., to provide “PopTiendas,” custom-built, self-sufficient pop-up stores made from shipping containers, to 40 eligible business owners and nonprofits on the island. Priority is given to entrepreneurs who lost their businesses as a result of Hurricane María.

Connecting Paths (Morovis and Adjuntas) 

With Hispanic Federation support, Connecting Paths is implemented a multi-phased project that provided community assessments and taught resilience, empowerment, and economic development skills. Connecting Paths aimed to enhance the economic self-sufficiency of mountain communities by providing 45 women and men with training in sewing, horticultural work, and business skills to launch their own micro-enterprises. Connecting Paths also integrated workshops on personal resiliency and finance to further the empowerment of rural inhabitants. In phase two, Connecting Paths is training 25 additional women in Jayuya and supporting the establishment of a women owned cooperative powered by their past participants. Connecting Paths is also integrating workshops on personal resiliency and finance to further the empowerment of rural inhabitants.   

Surcos-Centros Sor Isolina Ferrer (CSIF) 
(San Juan and Ponce) 

A second grant awarded to CSIF helped develop a fashion-centric “economic solidarity center” to employ and train 30 seamstresses in partnership with fashion designer collective Retazo.  Participants received self-management and financial literacy workshops.

Programa de Educación Comunal de Entrega y Servicio - PECES (Humacao) 

Long dedicated to supporting local vendors, PECES is revitalizing the local economy by identifying the needs of small business and providing them with technical assistance, legal services, replacement equipment, and other needed resources. PECES also hired local contractors to rebuild homes and provide basic construction training to youth. Thirty small businesses received direct support to reopen.

Incubadora Microempresas Bieke, Inc. (Vieques) 

The municipalities of Vieques and Culebra, off the east coast of Puerto Rico, are small islands connected to the main island via a limited and unreliable ferry service. To this day, they continue to receive all their power by diesel generators. With Hispanic Federation (HF) funding, Bieke supported microenterprises and spurred economic recovery. These efforts catalyzed the reopening of five businesses and the creation of 10 jobs, including a resilient wireless communications tower system that can be collapsed and then re-expanded to protect against a storm or hurricane.

Instituto de Ciencias para la Conservación de Puerto Rico – InCiCo (Island-wide) 

InCiCo used HF funds to coordinate the deployment of community kitchens and support people who prepare food from their homes to earn income. InCiCo tapped HF grant funds to train community members in the construction of mosquito nets through its “Las Tres Mosquiteras” initiative, prioritized for individuals who have health issues or other vulnerabilities. The long-term goal for these projects was to transition them into local cooperative models.   

Grupo Guayacan (Island-wide) 

Grupo Guayacán, a leader in small business support, was able to use HF funding to provide select small businesses with a combination of executive education, mentorship, and coaching training. Ten businesses also received small grants to be used for property repairs, new equipment, marketing or sales efforts, or other general support.

Asociación Recreativa y Educativa Comunal del Barrio Mariana (ARECMA) / Proyecto Apoyo Mutuo Mariana (Humacao)

With the support of HF, ARECMA is building up its Community Farm through technical support and expansion of planted land and strengthening “La Cocina Comunitary”, a solidarity community kitchen that creates value-added products and serves daily lunches. In addition, it is helping to develop agricultural activities in La Loma and to establish a Volunteer Program as an economic resource.. ARECMA is a community-based, non-profit committed to ensuring the well-being and integral development of the neighborhood and its people using a participatory model based on community self-management, cooperation and solidarity, and individual and collective social responsibility.    

Boys and Girls Club (Loíza) 

Understanding that many young people in Puerto Rico are feeling uncertain about their future on the island, HF supported the Project Makers Experience, an effort of the Boys and Girls Club in Loíza to create a long-term disaster recovery and sustainability venture to promote youth entrepreneurship and aim to break the cycle of poverty.  The project trained 33 young participants to develop skills to become entrepreneurs, leaders in their community or leaders in the world of work.  A total of 8 new business ideas were generated.

Villa Comunitaria Crozier (Utuado and Arecibo)

Villa Comunitaria Crozier promotes the development of the communities surrounding the Río Abajo State Forest through the creation and implementation of socio-economic, educational, cultural and nature encounter programs that use and conserve natural resources in a sustainable manner. HF funding is supporting the organization to rehabilitate an old camp in that Natural Reserve to serve as a training and employment center. They will also offer interpretive tours on history, fauna and flora, while providing spaces for basic health services, a technology center, an environmental training center, and entertainment. Funding will allow Villa Comunitaria Crozier to work on the physical conditioning of the cabins and other vital areas needed to be fully operational.

APRODEC (Ceiba)

The Alliance for the Economic Development of Ceiba (APRODEC) was born after the closing of the Roosevelt Roads Base. It was established to ensure the participation and integration of Ceiba residents in the process of redevelopment of said facility. After 14 years of struggle, they achieved the lease of a building of 60,000 square feet for a period of 30 years. Through HF funding, APRODEC is providing the Isabel Rosado Morales EcoTuristic Center of the East with the basic infrastructure to start its business trainings to the citizens of Ceiba and neighboring municipalities. Their goal is to establish an eco-touristic, educational, scientific and cultural complex that will boost and direct strategies to result in the development of businesses whose owners and managers are from Ceiba, contributing to the sustainable and resilient economic development of the Region.

Waves Ahead (San Juan, Cabo Rojo, Lajas, Toa Baja, Humacao, Yabucoa, Carolina, Cataño, Guaynabo, Bayamón)

Waves Ahead is a nonprofit organization dedicated to support LGBT older adults and women heads of households. HF is supporting the implementation of Discover Yourself: Social Incubator program. Project participants are having the opportunity to receive technical, vocational and crafts workshops that will result in microenterprise and business training. In addition, mental health is being addressed as the basis of a healthy human development. Approximately 50 participants are receiving personalized help to develop and implement their ideas and plans, thus accelerating a LGBTQ+ economy in Puerto Rico under the principles of community development and solidarity.

MUMAS Renaciendo Corp. (Arecibo)

Mumas Renaciendo Corp is a nonprofit organization focused on the transformation of mothers and their families by strengthening abilities and personal and economic development. Mumas' mission is to work hand in hand with the woman-mother of limited economic resources, to achieve her personal development, family, social and economic empowerment, attain self-management and minimize dependence. HF funds is enabling MUMAS to implement a program that will allow low-income mothers attain new opportunities through a holistic approach in which their self-esteem and autonomy will be addressed. The program is offering participants trainings on emotional intelligence, self- projection, innovation, manufacturing, inventory, sales, marketing, finance, among others. The program also aims to to develop skills and abilities to create their own microenterprises or enter the workforce.

Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico (New York and Puerto Rico)

The Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico, Inc., is a women's foundation founded and led by women in the Diaspora and women from across Puerto Rico. The Fundación promotes social justice and supports the economic security, safety, health, reproductive autonomy and general empowerment of women, girls and gender-fluid individuals in Puerto Rico.  HF funding is allocated to support the organizational development of Fundación de Mujeres en Puerto Rico, to identify and establish institutional marketing and communications strategies, provide sub-grants to nonprofit organizations that address the crisis of violence against women in Puerto Rico, and enable the coordination of strategic meetings to present and adopt the mission and vision statements of the Foundation, among other needs.