Rachna Udasi, 16, is putting her Business Studies to good use by helping dyslexic Ugandan children. She set up a coffee supply business to help Ugandan children struggling with dyslexia.
Rachna Udasi entered The National Tenner Challenge. She had £10 and four weeks to establish a business and make as much profit as possible. She was so successful that she beat thousands of other entries to clinch the Most Inspiring Individual award.
Rachna, bought 15 killos of green coffee beans which the St David’s College Uganda Team brought back from their July 2016 trip and negotiated having them roasted at Heartland Coffi in Llandudno.
She said: “Heartland Coffi also very kindly sponsored the roasting and packaging of the coffee. I’ve then sold the coffee to Seibiant coffee shop in Conwy, and am working to supply more coffee shops in the area.”
Rachna said she chose coffee because it is a mass market product and she knew there would be demand for it.
“The more the demand for the coffee beans the more the profit for the local women’s co-operative in Uganda”, said Rachna.
“This is helpful as the women receive a real wage, helping to break the cycle of poverty. The profit I make will go to children who have dyslexia. John Mary is one of the children the project is funding to get an education. He has severe dyslexia. But the problem is often misunderstood by his teachers who punish him as they think he is not putting in enough effort. There are many other children who suffer from this problem and their families are unable to send them to a school that can help them with their special needs as they are unable to meet the financial requirements. I am raising funds for child sponsorship in Uganda to help their parents meet these costs.”
Rachna added: “Being able to get these children one step closer to being able to read and write makes me happy. I will carry on with the project as I am looking forward to raising funds for as many kids as possible.”
The National Tenner Challenge is run by Young Enterprise and supported by the Business Growth Fund. More than 20,000 students entering the competition last year.
On 2nd May Rachna will attend a glittering awards ceremony at the Bank of England to claim her accolade.
Mark Turner head of business studies at St David’s College, said: “Rachna has shown a real entrepreneurial spirit in getting her coffee supply business off the ground and has been successful in dealing with both the local manufacturer and coffee shops in the Conwy region. I’m very proud of her.”