Aldea Development (Aldea Desarrollo in Spanish) operates in La Unión, a municipality nestled within the mountains of Western Honduras in the Department of Lempira.
La Unión is a municipality consisting of more than 20 communities or villages (aldeas in Spanish) connected by dirt roads leading to the main town. More than 5,000 people live in town, with another approximately 5,000 in the surreounding aldeas.
Our staff lives in Honduras and learns from members of the community. We're a true part of the community that we work in: we have first-hand knowledge of the limitations that present obstacles to development. But, we also hear first-hand viable solutions to these obstacles, and we foster an environment of discussion on how problems may be overcome by working together.
Aldea Development is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization. It was established in November 2009 as Unión MicroFinanza with a microfinance focus. The original vision of the founders was to create a microfinance organization supporting small-scale farmers. However, they soon realized that the true vision was community development.
Microfinance is a tool to support communities, but it cannot on its own achieve complete community growth. Toward this goal, we've added programs based on the visions that our clients had for their families and communities. In 2014 we changed our name to Aldea Development (which literally means Community Development) to better reflect our vision. What has remained the same since 2009 is our commitment to community-driven development.
About Us
Aldea Development is a community-driven development organization that works to empower the farmers and families of La Unión, Lempira, Honduras, through microloans, training, market access, and community partnership projects.