Program Highlights (Ten Minutes)

Show to teach women language and business skills needed to start a business in the United States

C.E.O Women Featured on ABC TV

OAKLAND, Calif., April 11, 2007 – The Oakland-based non-profit, Creating Economic Opportunities for Women (C.E.O. Women) is breaking new ground with the launch of The Grand Café, the organization’s first educational telenovela series designed to teach immigrant and refugee women in the Bay Area both English language and entrepreneurial skills to start their own businesses.

“Immigrant and refugee women in the Bay Area struggle to become self-sufficient because of language, cultural and gender barriers. Existing public resources and non-profit organizations often do not provide relevant or accessible pathways for these women to achieve self-sufficiency and find dignity in their work,” said Farhana Huq, C.E.O for C.E.O. Women. “C.E.O. Women has developed this telenovela series to allow women access and flexibility to learn and become connected with the resources they need to become self-sufficient entrepreneurs.”