While visiting many farmer women and men, selfhelp groups and generally people in informal settlements in the cities who live close or even below the poverty line I’m confronted often with the same challenges:

1. No or very little understanding on business. Often the difference e.g. between turnover and profit, basic material and work calculations and understanding business terminology are big challenges.

2. No money to invest. It’s not always a big amount needed to start, but mostly 50-200 EUR would be sufficient to do the first steps. But there’s no chance to get any credit or loan if you do not have anything. In that way e.g selfhelp groups save money every week. Some groups consisting of 10 people might have the idea to become snack makers and need a pot, some fire wood, and the first ingredients to produce the first snacks. Therefore, they need a start capital of 50 EUR. But have you ever asked yourself how long it takes if a groups saves e.g. 20 cents per week? Roughly 250 weeks! That’s nearly 5 years!!! If people have saved on their own 40, 50 Cents it takes already a lot of efforts.

3. Little self esteem and no self-confidence – there is no need to explain the why, I assume

That’s why we introduced a social micro credit system and mentoring training with our communities in three of our centers in Bungoma and Uasin Gishu County

Last year a group of colleagues, with our local NGO partners in Kenya have developed a solution that covers all the main challenges mentioned above. Holistically tackling the needs and covering the missing skills of interested community members, with long term mental support and concrete business skills training sessions and a credit/loan system that creates a win to all – without giving the loan takers sleepless nights!

All in all 20 000 EUR have been invested. More than 200 people from the poverty line became micro entrepreneurs within the first year – and e.g. in the whole farmer region around the Mbakalo ward, Bungoma county a huge change is happening…

But listen yourself what this woman shares:

Video