Maria Camila turns her passion into profit

Maria Camila is a 16-year-old student from rural Colombia. She lives with her parents and younger brother on their family farm. Like many rural youths, Maria Camila wakes up early to help with chores before taking the long walk to school.

“To get to school we have to travel an hour on a dirt road,” Maria Camila explains. “But this doesn’t bother us because we really like school. My favourite subject is entrepreneurship.”

Life in can be tough for young people in her village. It can be difficult to find decent work. Many young people feel they must move away to find better opportunities.

Turning passion into opportunity

Her journey took a turn when World Vision’s Youth Ready program arrived at her school. With no prior experience in business, she felt inspired hearing stories of young entrepreneurs who had turned simple ideas into thriving ventures.

“[The Youth Ready instructors] told us to think about the things that we like the most,” says Maria Camila. Through hands-on guidance, Maria Camila began exploring how her love for local festivities and traditional foods could be transformed into a business. She experimented with creating a new kind of Christmas dessert, a custard made from local coffee and chocolate.

After countless trials (and errors), she finally found the perfect recipe. “I sold my custards to people close to my family, to my friends and to my teachers. Everyone liked them, but on our farm, we had other needs, so I only did this when I [had free time].”

Sweet success

When Youth Ready offered the chance to present her business for seed funding, Maria Camila and her mother pitched their idea with confidence. Their efforts paid off. They received financial support to invest in ingredients and materials, allowing Maria Camila to scale up her production.

“I was very, very happy because I could not only make custard to sell [as a hobby], but I now had the help I needed to grow my venture.”

On the day she earned her first 200,000 COP (approximately CAD 72) from custard sales, she realized her dream had become a reality. The income helped support her family and sparked a vision far beyond baking.

The power of choice

Maria Camila began to see entrepreneurship as a long-term path not only to improve her own life, but also to bring hope and opportunity to other young people in her community. “When I grow up, I want to help more young people like me so that they don't have to leave their farms to have a good future.”

For Maria Camila, poverty is not just about money. It also means having fewer choices. October 17 is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This day reminds us that ending poverty requires a multifaceted approach and is ultimately about dignity, justice and belonging, in addition to accessing decent work.

“The learning I took away is that we must believe in ourselves so that our business grows,” says Maria Camila. “I want to leave a message to young people, and that is to keep going, study and believe in themselves so that their dreams come true.”

In 2025, Youth Ready engaged 750 adolescents and young people in Colombia, just like Maria Camila. They received personalized support from dedicated professionals to discover their entrepreneurial potential and gain vital job skills. Participants identified opportunities to shape their future education and employment, which helped them clarify their life goals and enhanced their self-esteem.

World Vision Canada’s Youth Ready Program, part of the Vision for Vulnerable Youth (VVYI) Initiative, is supported by The Barrett Family Foundation and individual Canadian donors. Operating in 10 countries in Latin America and Africa, Youth Ready equips young people with the tools to pursue education, employment or entrepreneurship.