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Category: Digital inclusion

“I can pay for things for my granddaughter that I could not for my daughter” Florence, Fashion Entrepreneur, Nairobi

Posted on by jglyn@hihinternational.org

Across Kenya, women led microbusinesses often face barriers to growth – from limited access to finance to low digital literacy. Bridging this gap is essential for building sustainable livelihoods and inclusive economic development.

From hairdresser to salon owner
Florence Omollo, a single mother from the informal settlement, Kibera, in Nairobi, began her working life as an assistant in a local hair salon. Soon, clients were seeking her out directly and so she decided to start her own business – now known as Be Smart Salon.
She started small, offering just blow dries and hair braiding but, with limited knowledge of how to run a business or access to the credit she needed to expand, it did not flourish. Customers even had to bring their own hair braids.

Learning to think digitally

In April 2025, Florence joined Hand in Hand where she gained essential skills in business growth planning, management, branding, and customer engagement. She learned how to record income and expenses, including to allow for her salary so that she did not ‘tap income that was going somewhere else.’

Crucially, Florence also embraced digital marketing, signing up on WhatsApp Business and TikTok. Initially, Florence had thought that digital marketing was only for big, professional salons and she really didn’t think that people from ‘high end’ areas would visit a hair salon in Kibera. But, with the help of her Hand in Hand business trainer, she learned how to create professional posts and the results were immediate – new customers began visiting her salon and she has even started offering home visits to meet the rising demand.

Expanding her services
With her increased turnover and confidence, Florence has expanded her services to include nail care, employing another woman to meet customer demand. She now ensures the salon stocks all necessary products, so clients no longer need to bring their own supplies.

By summer 2025 Florence’s monthly revenue had already grown from $675 to $788 and she’s decided to save the first $2 she earns each day. After completing her training, she even felt confident enough to take a commercial loan, investing the funds directly into her business to support further growth.

A new level of independence
Florence’s business success has transformed her family life. She supports her daughter and granddaughter, pays her daughter’s college fees and can now afford outings for the three of them “to the park and to have something to eat.” She is also able to visit her parents her parents in Kisumu more than once a year – an eight hour trip she can now afford to make regularly.
“Now I can pay for things for my granddaughter that I could not for my daughter,” Florence says. “I never thought people from outside Kibera would come to my salon, but they do.”

How digital skills helped Lizzie rebuild her business and income

Posted on by Ann Dickinson

In Nairobi’s most underserved communities, women are far less likely than men to have access to the internet. Yet digital connection can be life-changing – enabling women to grow businesses, reach new markets and build more secure futures for their families.

For Elizabeth “Lizzie” Nzule, gaining practical digital skills became the turning point in rebuilding her livelihood. Looking back, Lizzie says, “When I remember where I started, I was crying all day long. Now I have my own business and employ someone else. My life has changed beyond what I imagined.”

When Lizzie lost her office job during the Covid-19 pandemic, the family could no longer afford rent in the city, so they sold household essentials and moved to Mumbi, where living costs were lower.

Determined to earn an income, Lizzie then began selling cosmetics from home. But without market insight or business skills, she invested in products that didn’t sell.

In 2023, Lizzie joined Hand in Hand. She learned how to track income and expenses, manage stock, plan for growth and use social media to promote her business.

Applying these skills, Lizzie created her own brand and opened Lizzie Collections, a cosmetics shop in Mumbi. She began using WhatsApp, Instagram and TikTok to share professional content and respond directly to customers. Lizzie has since expanded her business to include a nail spa.

Her monthly income has almost doubled, she has hired one employee, secured medical insurance for her family and can now afford her son’s college fees.

Entrepreneurs in Nairobi’s informal settlements boost profits by 121%, thanks to Hand in Hand and Happel Foundation

Posted on by jglyn@hihinternational.org

A new programme by Hand in Hand International and the Happel Foundation is transforming the lives of entrepreneurs in Nairobi’s informal settlements. Equipped with new skills and resources, 1,000 small business owners in Kenya have seen their profits skyrocket by an average of 121% – equivalent to an additional USD 156 a month.

Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are the backbone of Kenya’s economy, employing 15 million people and contributing 40% to the country’s GDP. Yet, 98% of these businesses remain microenterprises, struggling with limited market access and scalability. To address these challenges, Hand in Hand and Happel Foundation launched ‘Driving Innovation, Growth, and Income Through Invigorating Small Enterprise’ (DIGITISE).

The three-year initiative will equip 3,000 entrepreneurs – more than 80% of whom are women, to scale up their businesses, providing advanced business training, support to access credit as well as coaching and mentoring. In addition to core business training, the programme will also test the effectiveness of including a digital curriculum to help business owners master e-commerce and digital tools to help their businesses grow.

The initial results from the digital training are compelling: entrepreneurs who received digital marketing and e-commerce training reported earning KES 5,000 (USD 108) more in revenue than those who did not. However, only 49% of those trained adopted digital practices, highlighting the need for further intervention to drive adoption – especially for women, who face greater barriers to smartphone ownership and internet access.

Alexander Lanz, Managing Director, Happel Foundation, said: “Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are the backbone of Kenya’s economy, yet the vast majority of these business owners struggle to scale, facing systemic barriers to growth – instead, subsisting on or just above the poverty line.

“Through the DIGITISE programme, we are providing these entrepreneurs with not just skills, but also market linkages, credit access, and digital tools to grow their businesses, and galvanize local economies”

Nick Lynch-Staunton, Head of Programmes, Acceleration and Climate, Hand in Hand International, said: “These results confirm that digital marketing has a tangible impact on revenue and profit. As we move forward with cohorts two and three, we will focus on breaking down barriers to digital adoption, particularly those facing women, ensuring even more entrepreneurs in under-served communities can take part in the digital economy, earning more and lifting their families out of poverty for good.”

“I deliver to hotels, clubs, church congregations” Damiyana, Food Entrepreneur, Nairobi

Posted on by admin_handinhand

Women often have less access to technology and the internet compared to boys and men. The gender digital divide in access to the internet remains the world’s largest in least developed countries and, at 32.9%, the gap is widest in Africa.

Did you know that while the Kenyan e-commerce sector is worth around $2bn, women are only half as likely as men to have access to the internet in Nairobi’s most deprived communities? Yet, if 600 million more women are connected to the internet in three years, this would translate to a rise in global GDP of between US$13 billion and US$18 billion

Online access brings business success

For someone like Damiana Musyoko, access to the internet meant the difference between a roadside stall selling fried fish with an income of US $160 a month and a commercial enterprise supplying hotel restaurants in Nairobi and sales of US $500 a month.

Bridging the digital divide

When Damania joined Hand in Hand’s Accelerator Programme, designed to equip successful micro-entrepreneurs to take their businesses to new heights, she was allocated a mentor and selected for additional training in digital marketing and sales. This included instruction on building her online product portfolio and setting up accounts on Facebook Marketplace and WhatsApp for Business. She also became a retailer on Jumia, Africa’s Amazon. Five months later, Damiana’s business was transformed.

“I have a Facebook account and I’m on TikTok. But it is the WhatsApp Business account that has made the difference. On WhatsApp I have 2,000 friends, so my posters get 200 views and many more shares. I deliver to hotels, clubs, church congregations. Hand in Hand, you have really made me grow!”

Damiana says.