Peru’s migrant bakers knead dreams across borders

A left-over bottle of wine used as a rolling pin- that’s how the idea for ‘Amasando Sueños’; the gastronomic initiative was born. The business was launched by Ana Graciela Delgado and her partner Kimberlys Olivar in the Peruvian city of Tumbes. 

The couple’s food journey began when Ana, a former lawyer who arrived in Peru from Venezuela in 2019, decided to use a bottle of wine which has been left behind after a New Year’s party, to make a tequeños – a traditional Venezuelan fried cheese stick. After posting photos of their home made tequeños on social media, Ana and Kimberlys went from just four orders to baking most days until 1 am.

In December 2020, during the height of the pandemic, ‘Amasando Sueños’ officially opened its doors for business thanks to support from the UN in Peru and its partners. 
 

Supporting livelihoods during crisis 

Sustaining the livelihoods of the country's most vulnerable populations was one of the immediate challenges the UN and the national authorities in Peru were grappling with as the COVID-19 crisis first began to unfold in early 2020. 

For Peru’s growing migrant and refugee population, which has now reached 1.5 million, the impact of the pandemic was particularly acute. Recognizing this, the Government of Peru made a formal request to the Resident Coordinator for the UN to help address some of the most pressing needs, including housing, health, nutrition and education facing migrant and refugees communities across the country. 

The response of the UN country team was swift and wide-ranging. Working in close cooperation with UNHCR, IOM and other agencies, the Resident Coordinator engaged international donors on the need to scale-up support to Peru’s migrant and refugee communities. At the national level, the Resident Coordinator advocated for more public policies to protect their rights and co-led the National Humanitarian Network to coordinate humanitarian and integration assistance together with The National Institute of Civil Defense. 

As a result, the UN country team’s joint programming targeted towards Peru’s migrant and refugee communities greatly expanded. Ana and Kimberlys were just some of the migrants in Tumbes who benefitted from this support. 
 

Fostering community entrepreneurship 

In 2021, along with 50 others, the couple participated in the entrepreneurship program for finance and marketing organized jointly by IOM and San Ignacio de Loyola University (USIL). That year, they were able to secure seed capital from IOM and Cooperazione Internazionale (COOPI) which allowed them to buy an industrial kitchen, utensils, supplies and other implements. 

"With this support, we acquired knowledge to better shape our business and grow," Ana recalls. 

A year later, they continued their training as entrepreneurs acquiring a range of practical tools, with support from UNHCR and other humanitarian partners. Since its inception, Amasando Sueños has tripled daily production, with corporate clients and a new menu including more traditional Venezuelan snacks.

"Amasando Sueños has given us a dignified livelihood, allowing us to pay our rent, cover our needs and support our families in Venezuela," explains Ana. 

Today Amasando Sueños is working with IOM to train a new generation of entrepreneurs, teaching pastry making to a group of 25 other local refugees and migrants. Following the success of this initial training initiative, IOM, UNICEF and UNHCR joined forces to support the foundation of the Asociación de Emprendedores Unidos Venezuela-Perú (ASEMU); an association which helps refugees and migrants integrate into the labour market and offers survivors of gender-based violence a critical tool for recovery as well as economic and emotional support. 

Working together with another 14 organizations, ASEMU has helped strengthen local capacities for protection and information management in Tumbes and has improved dialogue with other governmental and non-governmental actors. 

At the end of 2022, ASEMU received funding from UNHCR to implement another project to further strengthen entrepreneurship opportunities in Tumbes. 
 

Harnessing hope for the future 

For migrants like Ana, these opportunities provided a vital source of income during a difficult period and sparked a sense of hope for the future. 

"Entrepreneurship is not easy, but it can be done. If you ask me if I want to go back to practicing law or to continue with Amasando Sueños, I would say that Amasando Sueños is my life.”

Although the most critical phase of the pandemic may have subsided, the UN in Peru continues to support the country’s migrant and refugee population. For the first time, the UN in Peru’s Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2022-2026 positions the needs of refugees and migrants as a central, crossing cutting priority. Together with partners from across the UN country team, the Resident Coordinator is working to mainstream these efforts and ensure that no one is left behind. 
 

To learn more about the work of the UN in Peru visit Peru.un.org