Following the completion of the pilot project (2016-2019), ES VICIS Foundation is scaling up in other rural communities in Argentina, and initiating projects in Spain, India, and Colombia. In addition, organizations from more than 25 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa expressed their desire to implement Welcome to my Village in the coming years.
Scaling-up plan in 20 villages.
Advanced phase: country visit. One-on-one meetings with potential re-migrants, rural communities, and primary stakeholders.
Initial phase: first contact with potential stakeholders.
Proactive inquiries from potential stakeholders and beneficiaries.
Scale: How We will Grow
There is extraordinary demand for our program. Organizations in more than 20 countries have contacted us hoping to replicate our work. We have shared our model in seven universities (four in Europe, three in Latin America) and various international forums. On average, each week we receive applications from at least two towns and 50 individuals seeking our help with repopulation or resettlement.
To carry out our expansion, we plan to accelerate our training and knowledge sharing work. The program “Welcome to my Village” is designed with a structured six-phases work model and once the project is designed (phases 1-2) our teams train select organizations in rural development and provide them with the tools needed for program management and execution. We will continue to play a central role in the initial phases at each site, coordinating with our regional partners. We will help win the commitment of the communities and local partners, as well as carry out in-depth evaluations of stakeholders, manage risk mitigation and craft project plans.
To ensure economies of scale, in each new region we enter we plan to establish a minimum of five village revitalization sites, with a total population of beneficiaries of at least 5,000 individuals. Our organization currently relies primarily on government funding and private investors. We are currently pursuing a range of grant opportunities to expand our funding base and our areas of work. We anticipate a mixture of foundation, government and private funding will support our efforts moving forward.