Immigrant Development Center

Building Community Health, One Micro-Loan At A Time

Moorhead, Minn.

The promise of economic opportunity, the chance to pursue dreams of owning a business and the freedom of being your own boss are all things that draw people to the United States.
 
The IMP gives immigrants the opportunity to attain a better quality of life.

The International Market Plaza is a multi-cultural dining and shopping experience.

For immigrants and refugees, the pull of entrepreneurship is strong, but a unique set of challenges, from language barriers to financial situations, can make it harder to follow their dreams. The Immigrant Development Center of Fargo-Moorhead, a business-development nonprofit headquartered in Moorhead, brings those barriers down, one lesson, loan or lease at a time.

“The mission of the IDC is to work with the immigrant and refugee community in our area to promote economic development and self-sufficiency,” says Fowzia Adde, executive director of the Immigrant Development Center and herself an immigrant from Somalia. Adde has been with the organization since its founding in 2003.

The Immigrant Development Center works with people who want to start businesses through every step of the process, from writing and developing business plans to learning taxes, payrolls and permits to finding an office space. IDC can also help with ongoing business challenges, even if the person didn’t use its services before — one business owner turned to IDC to learn cash-flow management after opening her restaurant with her own savings.

IDC can also provide micro-loans to aspiring entrepreneurs who go through their program — an important first step down the road to business success. “In the refugee and immigrant communities, few people have a credit history or a long-term relationship with a local bank,” Adde says. “If an entrepreneur gets a micro-loan from us, they can then go to other lenders and use it to show that they have a developed plan and are ready to be funded.”

Fundamentally, Adde says, IDC listens to the people it serves. “We help them when they have ideas,” Each person they serve receives a personalized plan that addresses their specific needs, whether they want to open a restaurant, store or home business.

The IDC recently raised funds to purchase and renovate a building to open the International Market Plaza, an indoor mall just outside downtown Fargo where business owners can rent a small storefront or office space. Though the building is currently in a soft opening phase while final renovations are finished, it’s already home to a vibrant mix of shops, including cafés, clothing stores, jewelers, electronics repair, a barber and even an auto body shop.

“We received funding from the Blue Cross Foundation that supports our micro-loans, entrepreneurial training and a bit of operational support,” Adde says. “And by getting funded through the Foundation, we also get evidence that the community supports us and increases our chances of getting grants and certifications down the line.”

Beyond the immediate economic benefits of encouraging new entrepreneurs, Adde is quick to point out the health benefits of self-sufficiency. “People who make more money have longer lives than people who have low incomes,” she says. “A steady paycheck and consistent employment can improve the health of an entire family.”

“We served a woman from Bosnia who opened a cleaning business with her husband and her son,” Adde says. “We helped her with a loan and a plan, and now she cleans for several large companies in the area. This family became so happy and is so satisfied, and the father is much healthier after starting to work.”

Adde’s gregarious nature and belief in the mission — along with the can-do attitude of the entire staff and volunteer base — have connected her to many community leaders, financial institutions and charitable organizations around the area, who recognize the opportunities the IDC brings to the Red River Valley. “It’s about relationship-building, networking, shaking that person’s hand — you have to do good work in order to bring more positive things for your community,” she says.

“Fargo-Moorhead is such a small community, and this kind of organization didn’t exist before we came along. Unlike Minneapolis, where there are a lot of options, we’re the only organization in the community who can provide this kind of assistance,” Adde says. “It’s very important for people all over the state to have access to programs like this, not just the metro area. The whole state of Minnesota will get healthier together.”