Hand in Hand teams up with Safaricom in Kenya
18 Aug 2015
Hand in Hand Eastern Africa CEO Pauline Ngari (right) with Safaricom Foundation Chairman Joseph Ogutu (middle) and Junior Achievement Kenya Executive Director John Wali (left).
Hand in Hand Eastern Africa is joining forces with Safaricom, Kenya’s leading telecommunications company, to create 7,000 jobs.
Announced on August 12, the Safaricom Foundation’s Key 2 Empowerment fund invites members of Hand in Hand Self-Help Groups to apply for microloans worth up to 30,000 KES (US $290). Only members who have completed their training will be eligible to apply.
“Many young people who wish to start small and medium enterprises lack the capital to do so, and unfortunately, financial institutions classify them as high-risk borrowers,” said Joseph Ogutu, Safaricom Foundation Chairman, during the launch of the fund.
Members of Junior Achievement Kenya, an NGO that provides business and skills training to youth aged 18 to 24, are also eligible to apply.
Safaricom, founded in 1997, is Kenya’s largest mobile network operator. The company is 40 percent owned by the UK’s Vodafone Group Plc.
By the numbers
5,000 enterprises
7,000 jobs
Up to 30,000 KES (US $290) per loan
In the press
Members of Kenya’s national press were on hand to cover the launch.
The Star – ‘Safaricom launches revolving fund for young entrepreneurs‘
Standard – ‘Safaricom Foundation launches fund for “high-risk entrepreneurs” in Kenya‘
For more information about Hand in Hand Eastern Africa’s partnership with Safaricom, please email Program Manager Agnes Svensson.
