The Voilà Foundation is focused on three areas that combine our knowledge of technology with Haiti’s long term needs including education and job creation. In a country where two-thirds of the citizens lack formal employment, job opportunities are critical. Prior to the earthquake, roughly 70 percent of the population were living on less than $2 a day. Voilà is leveraging the benefits of its wireless infrastructure to stimulate economic growth and create jobs through skills training and sponsoring entrepreneurs. Only through long-term sustainable employment opportunities will Haiti be able to stand on its own and further the rebuilding process.

“Toupatou Toupanou”

In 2010, the Voilà Foundation launched a pilot project to provide the disabled community in Haiti with an occupation, a source of income and the dignity that they deserve. 29 trial participants all in the Port au Prince area received a Toupatou phone to start a business for themselves.

In partnership with and executed by J’Aime Haiti, “Toupatou ToupaNou,” meaning “Toupatou, It’s Your Turn,” was formed to provide the disabled population with a source of income by selling local and international calls on Toupatou phones wireless public telephones that track call minutes used. They were also trained in phone repair thus providing three income streams.

Trainings were held at the Ministry of Handicap and each participant received a certificate of completion and a phone repair kit of their own at a press conference held by Voilà. They received a one-time start up cache of gourdes for calls on the phones, as well as a bonus incentive for meeting sales quotas for the fi rst three months of sales.

Following the training, monthly meetings were held at the Ministry to share stories of success in sales methods to boost morale, create a sense of camaraderie and belonging, and hear what was working for others.

The success of this program is due to Gerald Oriol, (left), the founder of J’Aime Haiti and the President of the National Association of Handicap in Haiti. The Voilà Foundation has worked with him over many years and we are very proud to have the honor of working with Gerald and look forward to continue working with him in 2011.

Based on early success, the foundation is expanding the program with plans to provide a minimum of 50 disabled Haitians per quarter with Toupatou phones, starting with Les Cayes.

Voilà Has Successful First Year Providing Mobile Money Services - Wins USAID Award

In December 2010, Voilà launched the first-ever mobile money service in Haiti – T-Cash, enabling Voilà customers to use their phone as a ‘mobile wallet’ - withdrawing all or part of their money; transferring it to their friends or family and even paying for food and merchandise from a network of merchants. Just three months into service, T-Cash had over 65,000 registered users. Today there are currently over 300,000 registered T-Cash users who have conducted over 3 million financial transactions on their Voilà phones, and Voilà has built up a network of over 1100 T-Cash agents and merchants throughout Haiti, with plans to scale up to 1500 by the end of the year.  The service is available in over 30 cities throughout the country, and new merchants and vendors are coming on board every week.

In recognition of that success and growth, Voilà received the majority share (89%) of the first ‘Scaling award’ from the Haiti Mobile Money Initiative (HMMI), a partnership between The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and USAID, administered by The Haiti Integrated Finance for Value Chains and Enterprise (HIFIVE). 

 “The promise of using wireless phones to expand financial services to Haiti’s rural poor is starting to take root,” said Brad Horwitz, President and CEO of Trilogy International Partners.   “Since Voilà first commercially launched mobile money services in Haiti late last December, over $16 million worth of transactions have been made using T-Cash, and another $4 million worth of payroll transactions have flowed through the system, demonstrating that mobile payment solutions are a viable option to extend banking services to Haiti’s largely unbanked population.  T-Cash was designed to encourage rapid adoption and these early results indicate the approach is working,” Horwitz said. 

An initial, key differentiator of Voilà’s T-Cash service is a ‘mini wallet’ feature which allows customers to use a short code to immediately activate the service -- without traveling to an agent location – and store up to $62.50  on their Voilà phone.  “The mini-wallet is a distinguishing feature for T-Cash that’s proven to be a real motivator and sets us apart in the marketplace,” Horwitz said. “It’s been a particularly useful tool for our NGO customers who benefit dramatically from the additional flexibility it provides in administering payroll services.”

Voilà originally partnered with Mercy Corps to use T-Cash for administering their cash assistance programs, and has since partnered with a variety of other NGOs including Oxfam, World Vision, Help Age, and Catholic Relief Services (CRS), providing payroll services to over 20,000 people.  What’s more, these services are playing a practical role in helping the nation rebuild. NGO’s are using T-Cash as a safe, convenient, and cost effective way to pay their cash-for-work recipients.

In the short term, as additional NGOs join the service, the program will help more communities rebuild faster through renewed infrastructure and increased personal income, infusing the economy with much-needed currency. In the long term, the program can scale further across the country and across a range of financial services, including the ability to send and receive international money transfers which make up to 25% of Haiti’s GDP.

THE NEED

Relief organizations need an efficient and cost effective way to distribute cash - historically, up to 40 cents of every dollar was spent on logistics and security associated with moving money. With T-Cash, this can be reduced to just a few cents.

More importantly, T-Cash provides Haiti’s ‘unbanked population’ with convenient and affordable access to banking services. Over 85% of Haitian households have access to a mobile phone, but less than 10% of Haitians have a bank account of any kind. Simply getting money to relatives across Haiti can take days, amid the constant threat of being robbed. Voilà’s T-Cash service, launched in conjunction with UNIBANK, Haiti’s premier financial institution, and international relief and development agency, Mercy Corps, represents a milestone in leveraging wireless technology to spur recovery and development. Mobile money links vendors, users, agents, and banks in an ecosystem made possible by Voilà’s quality wireless infrastructure.

“The 3 Sisters”

Junie, Nadia and Magguie Louis-Jeune live in a small house with their eight children in Haiti’s Central Plateau. The three sisters lived in Port-au-Prince until the earthquake destroyed their homes. Junie and Magguie lost their husbands. Falling rubble broke Magguie’s legs. When the earth stopped shaking, all they had was each other, and a humble country house they had inherited. Junie is one of 20,000 people who were paid by Mercy Corps with T-Cash to work on a community selected infrastructure project. The sisters also received $225 to spend at a Mercy Corps-organized market fair. They paid school fees for two children and bought a mattress and cookware. In the city, both Junie and Magguie had market stands. Now, the sisters are trying their hand at farming, planting peanuts, eggplant and beans and have voiced their desire to start businesses in their new home. They have a desire to succeed.

Growing Mobile Money

Voila’s ‘ mini wallet’ feature allows Voilà customers to immediately activate the T-Cash service and store up to 2500HTG ($62.50 USD) by entering *700# on their Voilà mobile phone. The feature is unique to Voilà, will allow for rapid, widespread adoption. At left: Voilà markets the service to concertgoers, who are able to sign up on the spot and purchase their concert tickets using T-Cash.

A Mercy Corps cash-for-work beneficiary (right) from the rural community of Pandiassou, in Haiti's Central Plateau, participates in Voilà, Mercy Corps and Unibank's mobile wallet pilot program.

Photo Credit: Fabiola Coupet/Mercy Corps

CONGRATULATIONS to our NetHope Academy Graduates!

The NGO’s responding to Haiti’s needs following the earthquake faced a critic al shortage of computer expertise they needed skilled employees to help with desktop support, hardware maintenance and network administration. NetHope, a collaboration of NGOs working in more than 150 countries, came up with a plan: provide aspiring IT students with paid internships through the NetHope Academy. The Voilà Foundation joined the efforts of Microsoft, Cisco, Accenture and other key partners and help fund NetHope Academy’s successful first year.

The Program
On March 18th, 39 Haitian IT students made up the inaugural graduating class of the NetHope Academy’s ICT internship program the only academy of its kind in Haiti. During the 6-month curriculum, graduates attended class at Haiti’s leading engineering university, La Ecole Supérieure d’Infotronique d’Haiti (ESIH) and then worked in the IT department of one of 14 international NGOs. At the time of graduation, over 80% of the students were expected to be hired for full-time IT positions by June, allowing them to stay in the country they love and play a role in its re-construction.

One of the graduates, Emmanuella, spoke at the ceremony, and described what it felt like to be part of the program:

“We are very pleased to inform you that you have been selected to participate in the NETHOPE Academy Intern Program which will begin on September 13, 2010.”That mail, from Mrs. Marlene Sam, has launched the career of many of us. From that moment, Microsoft certificates, trainings and a whole six-month internship were provided unto us. It all seemed like a dream to us.“

Voilà Foundation Extends Partnership with NetHope

The Voilà Foundation contributed $50,000 to support NetHope Academy’s ICT Internship program. We were attracted to this project for a variety of reasons. We know first-hand that Haiti suffers from a lack of qualified IT technicians; yet a pool of such professionals is critical if Haiti is to attract the foreign investment that it so desperately needs. If the initial NetHope Academy is successful, it can be exported from Port au Prince to other Haitian towns, encouraging job growth in areas that are vital to Haiti’s future. Also, we are pleased to be working with NetHope a terrific partner.

Bernard Fils-Aime (left), the President of Voila Foundation, spoke at the ceremony and pledged the foundation’s continued support. “As members of the Haitian community, what we see is that many young people want to work, they want to contribute to Haiti’s progress. But they need opportunity. They need help to feel hopeful. The goal of the Voilà Foundation is to provide that hope through strong partnerships and meaningful programs that provide lasting benefits. The NetHope Academy is a glowing example. We are honored to work with you at the NetHope Academy and look forward to working with you on other projects that bring sustainable benefits to the Haitian people.”

Host Organizations

This pilot program is creating full time job opportunities while providing the NGO community with much needed IT specialists. The following NGO’s hosted interns: NetHope members World Vision, Save the Children, Concern, Mercy Corps, International Rescue Committee, Canadian Red Cross, CHF International, Habitat for Humanity, Oxfam GB and Catholic Relief Services. Other host organizations include World Health Organization, World Food Programme, Haiti Technology Group, Multilink and Access Haiti. Nearly 300 students applied for the 39 coveted spots.

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Voilà Foundation Strengthens Commitment to HELP

The Voilà Foundation is proud to support the Haitian Education and Leadership Program (HELP) - the largest university scholarship program in Haiti. For the 2010-11 school year, 20 of Haiti's best and brightest young adults are attending University in Haiti through a $100,000 grant from the Voilà Foundation, HELP's largest corporate scholarship sponsor. In a country where less than 1% attend university, over 80% of HELP scholarship recipients complete their degree and earn an average of $10,000 a year compared to Haiti’s GDP of $480, according to HELP. Importantly, more than 80% of HELP graduates work in Haiti, contributing to the economic growth and empowerment of their country.

Voilà’s CEO, Robin Padberg, presents check to HELP’s Country Director, Garry Delice and HELP recipients

Meet Marie-Michelle Montout

HELP Scholarship Recipient
Class of 2011 Education

Marie-Michelle chose to study education because she wants to improve Haiti’s education system from the ground up. After she graduates from Quisqueya University, her long-term goal is to create a network of kindergartens in rural areas. “Rural areas are most afflicted by illiteracy, because many kids never get to school,” explains the ambitious student, who believes a good education must start “at the base.” Making ends meet has always been difficult for Marie-Michelle and her family; her father is dead and her mother can no longer tend their land due to illness, often making Marie-Michelle’s HELP stipend the only source of steady income for her family. Marie-Michelle is determined to succeed so she studies “all the time,” managing only five or six hours of sleep a night. “Of course it’s a lot of work,” she says, but she knows that what she’s doing is essential to Haiti’s future. Other Voilà Foundation sponsored students are studying medicine, engineering, computer science, economics and accounting.

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