María proudly shares about her work as a community leader.

“Because of CEPAD’s program, I’ve been a part of a team that is getting 120 meters of roadwork fixed in our community. I help organize cleaning days to keep our community kept up and I check in with other participants of the programs to see how they are getting along and if they need any help.”

CEPAD’s Leadership Development Program is focused on empowering local leaders to serve their community long-term. Each community has a Community Development Committee (CDC), made up of six members. Their role in the community is to advocate for the needs of everyone and help propose certain projects to make improvements, like María advocating for better roads (pictured below). María and the rest of the CDC were able to present their needs and ideas to their local government office, which then worked with them in order to complete the project.

Part of CEPAD’s goal is to have at least half of the CDC be female, paying close attention to the women in rural Nicaragua, who are often voiceless and ignored. By empowering women like María, the community learns to value female leadership, and the next generation has role models to look up to.

To support more community leaders in rural Nicaragua, join us here.