Key Takeaways:
The #VacinaMaré campaign provided Covid-19 vaccines to more than 36,000 residents over 18 years of age in the favelas of Maré, bringing the total vaccination rate of the territory to over 90%
During the vaccine drive, NESsT portfolio company Maré de Sabores provided food to 900+ health professionals and volunteers, including over 2,700 snacks and 1,200 meals.
The campaign was a joint initiative by Fiocruz, Redes da Maré, the Municipal Health Department, SAS Brasil and other partners.
The favelas of Maré, located in the north of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is home to more than 140,000 people. To ensure that the inhabitants of this densely populated region are well-protected from contracting Covid-19, Fiocruz, Redes da Maré, the Municipal Health Department, SAS Brasil and other partners launched #VacinaMaré, a large-scale vaccination campaign supporting 31,000 residents over 18 years of age.
Maré de Sabores, a Brazilian social enterprise in the NESsT - IKEA Social Entrepreneurship Latin America Accelerator, supported the vaccination drive by providing food to more than 900 health workers during the campaign, serving 2,700 snacks and 1,200 meals.
This Maré-based catering company was founded to equip local women, especially low-income single mothers, with training, work experience, and job opportunities in the food industry to help them build their financial independence. Most program graduates secure careers in gastronomy, some find employment within Maré de Sabores while others start their own businesses.
In response to pandemic lockdowns, the enterprise initiated several business lines and quickly expanded to new markets. With NESsT and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship’s support, it is refining its new lines of services, developing its market segments, and strengthening its digital infrastructure to recruit and train more women.
“We had to seek solutions and design new lines of services. We started offering delivery services and preparing quality meals for humanitarian projects. In 2020, we distributed 65,000 meals, “ explained Mariana Aleixo, co-founder of the social enterprise.
Initially planned to last four days, #VacinaMaré was extended due to high demand and vaccinated more than 36,000 people, five thousand more than the original goal.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, Maré registered high rates of deaths and contagion. And now, 86,805 residents, the equivalent of 90.4% of its population over 18 years old as of early August 2021, have already received the first dose of the vaccine. The campaign's success reflects the power of the territory itself, the articulation and local mobilization of Redes da Maré, which was organized in an integrated manner with FioCruz to achieve the campaign's objectives,” Mariana commented.
With its experience in large-scale food production and well-trained team, the social enterprise was able to respond quickly to the vaccine drive’s change in demand, “Our biggest challenge was to organize such complex logistics in a short period of time. However, we were able to count on the support of our partner Assaí Atacadista, and we built a support network with some restaurants such as Slow Bakery, Filone, Casa da Tatá. The supplies provided were fundamental in the daily preparation of snacks,” added Mariana.
“We are very proud to have Mare de Sabores in our portfolio. Since its foundation, 800 women graduated, 160 of whom have found a job in the area.”
About NESsT
NESsT invests in social enterprises that create quality jobs for underserved communities while sustaining the planet. NESsT raises philanthropic and impact investing capital to support the poorest communities facing isolation, discrimination, and lack of jobs skills or education. Since its launch, the organization has trained over 21,000 entrepreneurs, supported over 1200 social enterprises and invested in close to 200 that have created over 70,000 quality jobs benefitting 700,000 underserved individuals in emerging market countries.
About IKEA Social Entrepreneurship
IKEA’s vision is to create a better everyday life for as many people as possible. IKEA Social Entrepreneurship began in 2012 to look at how the IKEA brand could include products and services from social entrepreneurs in our offer. More recently IKEA expanded its support to include programmes that accelerate the movement of social entrepreneurship in general. Supporting social enterprises with a vision to create a more inclusive and equal society, our ambition is to have a positive impact on people’s livelihoods. Today, we back and boost social entrepreneurs all over the world, as well as expand the business we do together. That way, we get to be a part of creating new opportunities for vulnerable people and communities – while fighting the root causes of poverty and inequality.