Schemes boosting female entrepreneurs

Women in business at an event held at a Nairobi hotel where Absa Bank announced a kitty of Sh10 billion for women-led businesses. Many other schemes have been created to bolster women's businesses.
 

Photo credit: Diana Ngila | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • Bidco Africa seeks to contract women and youth suppliers of sunflower and bamboo.
  • SheTrades in the Commonwealth Kenya connects women to the market and provides them with resources, information and tools to sustain their businesses during the pandemic.
  • Women in Technology Programme builds women’s businesses through credit and training on business improvement and growth.
  • Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) also runs Women in Manufacturing (WiM) progamme offers training and mentorship for women industrialists and links them to bigger markets.

Bidco Africa seeks to contract women and youth suppliers of sunflower and bamboo. Agribusiness development lead Mr John Kariuki said they seek to engage those whose size of farms are more than an acre.

"Those without land should not be discouraged. They can lease,” he said during a September 15 webinar on Opportunities for Youth and Women in Agribusiness organised by Invest in Africa. The firm buys a kilogram of high quality sunflower at Sh32.

For bamboo growers, he said, their plantations have to be located within 200km radius from Thika. 

The distance caveat shoulders farmers from incurring losses because transport cost may override the earnings, hence the nearer the farm, the higher the chances of better returns.

The firm buys a kilogram of bamboo at Sh5.50. Bamboo is used to fire boiler

Apart from buying their produce, the firm will offer contracted farmers technical support, he said.

Business opportunities

Bidco Africa, Mr Kariuki said, believes in enhancing economic growth through empowerment of women and youth thus the extension of business opportunities.

"We should be able to enhance (our) economic prosperity by investing in women and young generation," he said.

Bidco Africa, a manufacturer of edible oils, hygiene and personal products, food and beverages as well as animal feeds, is the latest profit-making institution to bolster women's efforts to succeed in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

International Trade Centre (ITC), Standard Chartered Kenya and Strathmore University's and Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) have established various schemes for the benefit of women in various ventures including agribusiness.

SheTrades in the Commonwealth Kenya, is for instance, an initiative of ITC. The initiative not only connects women to the market but also provides them with resources, information and tools to sustain their businesses during the pandemic. The initiative was launched in April, 2018.

Tourism sector

Women running businesses in sectors of textiles and apparel and agriculture including tea, coffee, horticulture especially avocado, beans and peas can take advantage of the initiative’s benefits.

Those in tourism as well as Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing are also among female entrepreneurs targeted by the initiative

SheTrades national coordinator Ms Phyllis Mwangi said 744 Small and Micro Enterprises owned by women have so far gained from various trainings on trade related skills.

“They have gone through various trainings such as export preparedness, branding for international markets for textiles companies, digital marketing and cloud technology and digital infrastructure,” she said.

Business linkage

Under the initiative, 261 businesses have been connected to international buyers through trade fairs and in-country business linkage events.

Women in Technology Program by Standard Chartered Kenya and Strathmore University's business centre @iBizAfrica is also another business facility for women in business.

The programme that has been running since 2017, builds women’s businesses through credit and training on business improvement and growth.

A call is made annually and one can apply for the programme through an online application to @iBizAfrica.

Successful applicants are put through a 12-week training on various topics on business growth such as book-keeping, leveraging on technology and branding. Outstanding SMEs are then awarded credit to boost their businesses.

Outstanding start-ups

Standard Chartered Head of Corporate Affairs and Brand Marketing for Africa and Middle East, Ms Olga Kimani said more than 1,000 entrepreneurs have applied for the programme.

Out of this, 30 were shortlisted to take part in the program and 15 outstanding start-ups received Sh1 million each to grow their businesses.

“To date, from cohort one, four out of five companies have received follow-on funding from both development partners and equity investors ranging from $50,000 to $150,000 and their businesses have grown revenue and sales in double digits,” she said.

Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) also runs Women in Manufacturing (WiM) progamme launched in 2017.

WiM offers training and mentorship for women industrialists in Kenya and links them to bigger markets. It connects budding entrepreneurs with seasoned women industrialists who mentor them. To join WiM, one has to be a KAM member. The membership subscription is done through KAM website.