For Eca, Building a New Life in Northwest Arkansas Means Launching His Business

FEB 8 2021

The essence of the US refugee resettlement program is to ensure all newcomers have the core necessities vital to building a new life in the states: financial self-sufficiency, case management, and cultural orientation. During the Reception and Placement period, each new household has between 90-180 days to receive these core services and begin the long process of building new lives. Through Canopy’s Long Welcome Plan, we are able to extend and expand these core services for up to 5 years after arrival!

Canopy’s Plan It! Entrepreneurship Class is a program implemented under our Long Welcome, and offers tailored course work to train aspiring entrepreneurs. 

Meet Eca

Meet Eca, an up and coming entrepreneur. Eca Mukandama graduated from Canopy’s first Plan It! Entrepreneurship class this past fall. He recently received his LLC to begin his new business! Eca hails from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Before coming to the US, he studied mechanics for large cars and trucks during his time as a refugee living in Burundi, a country located in East Africa. After settling in Northwest Arkansas a few years ago, Eca started repairing public transit buses. From there, he developed the idea to start his own auto sales and repair shop. 

“I work hard, work on my dream, I had some help from Canopy as well and also FORGE…that’s something good that makes you start a business with confidence.”

To see this goal come to fruition, Eca applied to the Forge Community Loan Fund to help get his business off the ground. Forge is a local nonprofit that provides small businesses with affordable access to business development services. Thanks to the Forge Fund, Eca received his first startup loan and is now working on opening the doors to his auto business here in NWA!

Plan It! Entrepreneurship Class

Canopy’s Economic Advancement program supports refugees, asylees, and the larger immigrant community through various services such as vocational training, career navigation, financial literacy training, and tailored entrepreneurship courses. Plan It! is a 12-week entrepreneurship training program that equips Canopy’s families with a solid foundation on how to build a business and develop a business plan. This Spring, we are launching our second round of this program, open to any immigrants and former refugees living in Northwest Arkansas! 

Stay tuned for dates and more details on how to apply!