Phase two of this project was six months in duration and was run in 2008 in Pidie Jaya, Aceh.This phase had the goal of strengthening and enhancing the capacity of the Seukeu Aceh Cooperative to stand alone as an independent and sustainable center for women’s pandan business activities. To achieve this goal, the project underwent the following stages:

1. Cooperative Strengthening

Phase two aimed to maintain the sustainability of the Seukeu Aceh Co-op as a center of women’s pandan businesses. Initially, Pekerti made efforts to increase the board’s motivation to be active within the co-op. This required a board reshuffle, skills training for cooperatives management, a new cooperative business plan arrangement and the setting-up of regular meetings.

2. Widening Project Services

This stage had the aim of widening project services to 200 new beneficiaries by delivering to them the same program given to our beneficiaries in phase one.

3. Products and Production

In order to ensure the sustainability of the Seukeu Aceh Co-op, the co-op was required to be able to produce qualified and marketable products at the completion of phase two. In order to achieve this objective, product development training was carried out in Java for selected beneficiaries, who then transferred their new skills to remaining beneficiaries in the field.

4. Developing a Standard Marketing System

Pekerti considers marketing to be an important part of any business. To support the Seukeu Aceh Co-op’s business development, experience and insight in marketing were needed. During phase two, Pekerti conducted activities that taught the standard marketing system of any co-op. They included marketing administration training, marketing consultation, a marketing planning session and implementation of the plan, training in promotion, an exhibition, promotion to national and international focused exposition (PPE and PKA) and the development of the co-op’s website.