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Visa and Hand in Hand’s entrepreneur training communities boosts incomes in Nairobi’s most deprived communitie

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Visa and Hand in Hand’s entrepreneur training communities boosts incomes in Nairobi’s most deprived communities: Kenya Micro-Enterprise Success Programme, Endline report by 60DB
Members saw an average income uplift of USD $156 per month
Hand in Hand’s Kenya Micro-Enterprise Success Programme (KMES) project, funded by Visa Inc., has resulted in entrepreneurs typically increasing their incomes by USD $156 per month, according to a report by 60DB.
The project is the first of its kind to target existing small business owners as well as first-time entrepreneurs. Delivered in Nairobi’s informal settlements, which the UN describes as “some of the most dense, unsanitary and insecure slums in the world,” the project aimed to boost local economies, create jobs, and lift families out of poverty.
The three-year programme provided 8,200 start-up entrepreneurs (6,560 of them women) living below the poverty line with the core business training they needed to start their own micro enterprises. It also provided advanced training to 1,600 people (1,280 of them women) who already owned and operated small businesses in the area, as part of its ‘accelerator’ cohort.
The report found:
– Members are now more resilient, and report improved ability to meet financial needs, with 91% and 94% of start-up and accelerator members respectively able to come up with the funds to cover an emergency.
– Start-up members increased their profitability by an average of 15%, earning an additional USD $150 a month. Accelerator members boosted their businesses’ profits by an average of 95%, earning an additional USD $192 a month.

– Women in both cohorts are now more involved in joint decision-making with their spouses. 54% of women in the start-up cohort and 56% of women in the accelerator cohort make joint decisions with their spouse when it comes to matters regarding health, visiting friends and family and large purchases.
– Members continue to see changes in their quality of life a year after the Hand in Hand training. 97% of start-up members and 95% of accelerator members say their quality of life has improved because of the Hand in Hand training still a year later.

Hand in Hand named ACT Charity of the Year 2018

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Hand in Hand International is proud to announce our selection as the Association of Corporate Treasurers (ACT) Charity of the Year for 2018/19.

The award, which culminates at the ACT Annual Dinner in November, follows a competitive bidding process to the ACT charity committee. Proceeds will fund an entire Kenyan village’s journey from subsistence to success, creating an estimated 275 new microbusinesses and 350 new jobs.

“From financial literacy training to the creation of sustainable microenterprises, so much of Hand in Hand’s work centres on sound financial management,” said Hand in Hand International CEO Dorothea Arndt. “That’s why it’s with particular pleasure that we accept this honour from Britain’s professional body specialising in corporate treasury.”

Although the designation lasts all year, fundraising peaks on 14 November with a charity auction at the ACT Annual Dinner at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London, hosted by Sandi Toksvig of Great British Bake Off and featuring John Kay, one of Britain’s leading economists, speaking on behalf of Hand in Hand.

We are looking for volunteers to help in those efforts, attending the dinner to speak with interested ACT members about our work. For more information about how you can help, please email Hand in Hand Head of Media Ann Dickinson.

To read the ACT’s Charity of the Year announcement, click here.

Dorothea Arndt appointed CEO of Hand in Hand International

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Hand in Hand International wishes to announce the appointment of Dorothea Arndt as CEO. She replaces Josefine Lindänge Gutman, who is stepping down on 22 February after 10 years at Hand in Hand.

Dorothea joined Hand in Hand International in 2013 as Head of Communications. In 2015, her role expanded to include Corporate Partnerships, and for the past year she has acted as Co-CEO responsible for Hand in Hand International’s UK operations during Josefine Lindänge Gutman’s maternity leave. Before joining Hand in Hand International, she managed sales and communications teams at companies including Shell and PwC, and transitioned to not-for profit at the British Red Cross.

“What we’re doing to fight poverty is working, and today’s announcement reflects that,” said Dorothea. “It is a vote of confidence not just for me but for everyone who helps us to transform lives with entrepreneurship: our staff here in London, our colleagues in the field, and all of the donors and partners who make our work possible.”

Outgoing CEO Josefine Lindänge said:

“Helping to grow Hand in Hand International into the truly effective organisation it is today has been among the greatest honours of my life. I am certain Dorothea will take us to the next level.”

Hand in Hand International Chairman Bruce Grant said:

“Dorothea steps into the CEO role bringing intelligence, dedication and tenacity to the Hand in Hand cause. On behalf of the entire board of trustees, we look forward to working with her to raise the funds to transform a targeted 13.7 million lives by 2021.”

Hand in Hand speaks at World Bank

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Washington, DC – The world’s poorest residents are doomed to stay that way until governments do more to nurture them as entrepreneurs. That was the message delivered by Hand in Hand Eastern Africa CEO Pauline Ngari to hundreds of MPs from dozens of countries at the World Bank last week.

Speaking to the Global Parliamentary Network, a group of policymakers who meet each year as part of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings, Pauline urged parliamentarians to:

  • adopt accelerator programmes to help grow SMEs;
  • put entrepreneurship studies front and centre in national curricula;
  • foster relationships between microfinance institutions and training organisations.

Her session, ‘Fighting Inequality Through Job Creation & Growth’, also featured speakers from the World Bank, IMF and Peace Child International. It preceded a roundtable discussion featuring Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, and Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank.

“Delivering programmes is what we do – and advocacy helps us do it,” said Hand in Hand International Co-CEO Dorothea Arndt. “The World Bank is the perfect venue to share our message, establishing jobs and entrepreneurship as key planks in the development agenda. Thanks, Pauline, for sharing it so ably.”

Youth Job Creation

The conference also hosted the launch of the ‘Youth Job Creation Policy Primer – 4th Edition’, a document outlining the problem of youth unemployment and proposing solutions for policymakers. Hand in Hand figured centrally, not least for our Entrepreneurship Clubs and four-step ‘systems approach’ to job creation. Several case studies featuring our members were also featured.

Click here to visit the policy primer website.