Sweets with a Purpose
Your generosity and support made these results possible
Sweet Dreams: A Proven Path to Empowerment
The Sweet Dreams project emerged from 15 years of working with underserved women across Central America. Recognizing the need for support and opportunities, we've helped women in Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, and Belize secure their first jobs and start their own businesses.
What sets Sweet Dreams apart is our focus on a specific skill set and the provision of a startup kit. Given the region's economic insecurity in recent years, we've seen a rise in women without access to job opportunities and trapped in poverty and violence. We believe economic freedom is a key to escaping these situations, offering the power of choice.
To achieve this, we partnered with Chavita Foods and Uplifting Women MGA to develop a program teaching Nicaraguan women how to make seasonal sweets. Sweets are a popular and accessible product in Nicaragua, requiring no refrigeration and minimal investment. Our goal was to equip women with business skills and remove barriers to generating income.
With your support, Sweet Dreams became a reality
Your donations enabled us to provide women with the training, resources, and support they needed to succeed.
FREE TRAINING
for women in Nicaragua living in cycles of poverty received free training to set up a home based business and make it sustainable
2800
sweets sold within the first two months after launching their businesses in December
SWEETS EXPORTATION
The sale of the sweets expanded internationally, being exported to Guatemala, The UK, USA and Costa Rica, resulting in increased income for the graduates.
Financial freedom gives women the power to choose better futures for themselves and their loved ones
(November 2024 – June 2025)
provided comprehensive training and support to help women launch successful home-based businesses. Participants received training in entrepreneurship, artisan sweet-making, and business management. We also provided startup kits and personalized follow-up support.
We are every woman’s cheerleader!
OUR MISSION
XtraOrdinary Women is an award-winning not-for-profit organisation founded in 2009. Based in Nicaragua, our sole purpose is to empower disadvantaged women to achieve financial and emotional independence.
5+ years on, an XOW graduate still has a stable income, sends her kids to school, and has built herself a house. We achieve sustainable change through our deep understanding of the basic needs of these women, our proximity to the communities, and the personal relationship we develop with each participant.
With over 15 years of experience, we’ve seen how the impact and support multiply.
We don’t create programs just to educate a reduced number of women and call it a day. We achieve sustainable change through our deep understanding of the basic needs of these women and our proximity to the communities.
We provide more than education...
- A scholarship to enter our programs transforms into a stable income, a job, or creating a business.
- A chance for 3 kids on average per family to access education
- The support a woman in abuse or cycles of struggle needs to build the life she dreams of; being financially independent allows her the choice to fulfill her goals, such as building a house.
Martha is creating a brighter future
Graduate 2023 | 56 years old | 3 children
At 56, Martha was left unemployed after an accident. Unable to find work, with three children, she was making ends meet selling jewelry, underwear, and anything that could bring in an income. Entrepreneurship was her most viable option to generate income but this was unsustainable due to the high cost of investing in products to resell.
She joined our Sweet Dream Project and learned to make and sell sweets from home. XtraOrdinary Women provided Martha with business training, the equipment, ingredients, and one-to-one mentoring to kick-start a small business from home. Martha learned to create a brand to promote her sweet sales and within weeks of setting up her business, Martha had shipped dozens of orders to Costa Rica!
For our Sweet Dreams Project, we partnered with Amy Jarquin, award-winning confectioner, of Chavita Foods, to provide women with a solid business plan, training, and tool kit to set up a low-cost business with a product that is seasonally in demand throughout the year. Martha invested time, energy, and commitment, you supported her to set it all up. Today, she generates a regular monthly income that supports her household and provides her family with stability. Thank you for supporting women like Martha.
Eveling now can pay for her kids school supplies
Garaduate 2023 | 2 children
Eveling, a single mother of a 5-year-old daughter, lives in a crowded house with 8 family members. To support her family, she's worked since the age of 14, which prevented her from leaving her family home. She built a small room from scrap metal to provide some privacy for her daughter. However, her ultimate dream is to live independently.
Eveling's education and job opportunities were limited due to her socioeconomic background. Her family needed more income, so she had to drop out of school early. Despite working hard, she couldn't achieve financial stability. Eight months ago, Eveling joined our Sweet Dreams program, designed to help women like her find jobs and start home-based businesses.
Through the program, she received training from award-winning confectioner Amy Jarquin, learned how to bake artisan sweets, and received business training and mentoring. We also provided her with the necessary equipment to start her business.
In her first month, Eveling sold over 250 sweets! Eight months later, she has her income for the first time. She continues to support her family, has enrolled her daughter in school, and is saving for a down payment on a plot of land for their future home.
With your support and her hard work, she's finally building the future she deserves.
Tamara is builiding a home for her family!
Graduate 2023 | 2 children
Tamara grew up in a landfill called La Chureca. She worked against the odds to finish school. She became a young mum of 2 and struggled to find stable employment. She mainly bought and resold products informally going door to door and standing on the street with wares. As her kids were young she would have to bring them with her or pay someone to look after her kids. She was barely breaking even.
Our Sweet Dreams project was designed to help women like Tamara, who need financial stability and desperately lack job opportunities. The Sweet Dreams project taught Tamara to set up a home-based sweets business and create a product she can sell all year round within their community and beyond.
2 months after graduating, she applied for a market stall in a nearby village. 8 months on Tamara has started to build a house for her and her family. XtraOrdinary Women is able to offer our programmes thanks to your support! Thank you
Cecilia build a business from home
Graduate 2023 | 2 children | 49 years old
Cecilia had informal employment as a cleaner for years, juggling part-time nannying and hand-washing clothes for others in her community. Cecilia's is the perfect example of this relentless cycle often leaves women like her with no choice but to overextend themselves, taking on multiple jobs to generate enough income.
This program aim to empower women to create sustainable businesses that provide not just financial independence, but also the means to improve their lives—whether that’s building a home, returning to school, or gaining access to healthcare. Cecilia is excited about the prospect of supporting her daughter’s university education and creating a better life for her family through a home-base business.
Celia sold on average +200 cajetas a month and she is now working with her daughter and they provide enough income to cover their household expenses.
Thank you for supporting Cecilia!
What's Next for The Sweet Dreams Project?
The Sweet Dreams Project, made possible by your generous support, has been a resounding success!
We equipped women in Nicaragua with the skills, resources, and confidence needed to launch their own businesses and achieve financial independence. We know countless more women across Central America could benefit from this life-changing program. However, traditional in-person training may not always be accessible; leaving home for in-person training isn't always an option.
That's why we're excited to announce our next step
Creating an online platform! Our online platform will offer the XOW curriculum directly on participants' phones. This removes barriers like location and transportation, allowing women to learn on their own schedules and in their own homes. Access to phones is widespread in Central America, often shared by family members. This flexibility ensures the program reaches the women who need it most, where they need us most - in their homes.
We've already successfully implemented online elements in our training since 2018, and using accessible platforms like WhatsApp and Meta groups for hybrid learning during the pandemic. This experience lays the foundation for our mobile platform.
This is where you come in again! We need your help to make this dream a reality. If you're passionate about empowering women and creating positive change, we invite you to be a part of it!
