A meetup of Facebook community leaders. — Photo courtesy of Facebook

Facebook recently announced the winners of its Facebook Community Leadership Programme. From Viet Nam, Ngo Thi Hoai – Programmes Director of WECREATE VIETNAM, an entrepreneurial community centre for women – was awarded the fellowship.

From over 6,000 applications, 115 people were accepted to the programme as community leaders in residence, fellows or youth participants.

In addition to funding, participants will receive training, mentorship and guidance from Facebook. At select points over the next year, they will spend time at Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California working with the team to help develop their community initiatives.

“We are honoured that every day, across the country, people come together on our platform to support each other and build community,” said Facebook Country Director for Viet Nam Christy Le. “Our community leaders work tirelessly to make this possible – whether it is running a support group for mothers or driving a charitable giving movement. Ngo Thi Hoai is one such leader, and we are proud to have her represent Viet Nam in the Facebook Community Leadership Programme.”

“A Mekong Business Initiative study shows that Viet Nam’s enterprising women own 25 per cent of the country’s SMEs,” said Ngo Thi Hoai. “They are the boosting the economy; however, there are still barriers to empowering them to grow stronger.”

“WECREATE VIETNAM has created an inclusive environment where women can access essential resources needed to overcome these barriers and start or grow their businesses,” said Hoai. “We hope this programme from Facebook Community will help WECREATE unleash more potential of women-led entrepreneurship in Viet Nam in the future.”

The Facebook Community Leadership Programme is designed to empower leaders from around the world who are building communities. — VNS