From Survival to Stability: How Families in Haiti Are Building a Better Future in Just 18 Months

What does it take to truly end poverty for a family?

For families surviving on less than $1.25 day in Haiti, the lowest level of the economic pyramid, which is sometimes called ultra-poverty, daily life is a series of challenges. Basic needs—the next meal, medicine, school fees—remain out of reach.

As is often the case, the most marginalized people are women and children who receive little or no education and live in rural areas where work opportunities are scarce. Life is defined by meeting today’s needs instead of sowing seeds for tomorrow.

The Graduation model is designed to help families take a powerful step out of extreme poverty and into lasting stability.

A Different Kind of Support

The Graduation program is not a quick fix. It is an intensive, multi-intervention journey that typically lasts 18 months. During the program, participants gain the tools, training, and support they need to build a more secure future.

This methodology was first developed by BRAC, one of the largest international development organizations in the world, in 2002. In Haiti, Opportunity partners with Fonkoze, a trusted partner who has helped more than 20,000 people through their Graduation program since 2017, and we continue to share learnings from them across our Graduation programs in Colombia and Malawi. With Opportunity’s 55 years of expertise in microenterprise and financial literacy training and tailoring to the local context in Haiti, Graduation becomes a “big push” that meets families where they are and helps them move forward toward the future they envision.

Here's how it works:

• Stabilize: Families receive training to begin developing their own sources of income. During the first six months, they also receive a small monthly stipend to cover meals and secure their homes, such as purchasing a steel roof. This allows them to focus on building their businesses—not just surviving. Many families choose two activities: one that generates immediate income (like a small retail shop) and another that builds long-term value (like livestock).
  
  
• Empower: Participants gain life skills, financial literacy, and coaching to build confidence and resilience. Each week, Opportunity caseworkers visit participants to provide mentorship and support. Participants also learn practical household and health skills, such as building sanitation systems. Just as important, they become part of a community where they can learn from fellow entrepreneurs and mentors.
  
  
• Equip: Families receive training and productive assets to launch or grow small businesses. With their new income streams, many join savings groups, where members pool savings and lend to one another, which creates ongoing access to capital to stabilize income or expand their businesses over time.

In Haiti, the program goes even further. Through partnerships with local health centers, families receive access to healthcare, ensuring that illnesses such as malnutrition, typhoid, malaria, and infections do not stand in the way of progress.

And while many participants are women working to support their households, the program reaches the entire family—helping mothers and fathers build a stronger foundation together.

Real Change and Lasting Impact for Families

In 2025, 650 families in Haiti completed the Graduation program. Here are just a few of the incredible transformations that graduates achieved:

• 99% of participants increased their income
• 99% achieved a stable livelihood
• 96% reported increased confidence in themselves and their ability to change their life circumstances
• 82% of families are now sending all their children to school
• Graduates have, on average, $558 in savings

And one of the most meaningful changes is food security. Before the program, 58% of families were living on just one meal a day or less. By the end of the program:

• 67% of families are eating two meals a day
• 24% of families are eating three meals a day

Find more impact results in Opportunity's 2025 Impact Report. 

That's more than just a number. It means parents know their children won’t go to bed hungry. It means stability and peace of mind.

Celise's Story: A Future Forward

When Celise joined the Graduation program in Haiti, she had nothing but knew what she wanted to do: open a grocery business selling basic food items.

Celise committed to learning financial literacy and business management. After joining a local savings group, she started a grocery business and began raising goats.

Step by step, those efforts paid off. As her income stabilized and savings grew, Celise expanded her grocery inventory and added turkeys to her livestock business. What began as a small investment has grown significantly:

My business started with 15,000 gourds [$115]; now my business and livestock are worth 115,000 gourds [almost $900]."

A Powerful Way to Support Haiti

What makes the Graduation program so effective is that it doesn’t just address short-term needs—it builds resilience so families can navigate whatever comes next. Seven years after graduation, 97% of participants continued to improve their living standards. (BRAC)

Change is not only possible, it is measurable and lasting. 

Today, graduates have savings. They have the skills and experience to manage money and start a business. They have more secure homes and better sanitation, nutritious meals, and children in school. And, perhaps, most importantly, the confidence to keep moving forward and build a better future.

If you’re looking for a meaningful way to support families living at the bottom of the economic pyramid in Haiti, Colombia, and Malawi—one that creates lasting, generational impact—this is it.

Invest in a better future for families around the world at opportunity.org/donate.