Gates Foundation and EIB collaborates to Empower Women

European Investment Bank has collaborated Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in order to improvise Kenyan women’s economic power by tackling key barriers to financial inclusion. The alliance has come up with new €30 million microfinance programme in Kenya which is backed by €15 million from EIB Global and financing from KCB Bank Kenya.

The programme is designed to make sure than 80 per cent of the final beneficiaries shall be women. The programme shall provide access to finance, risk-adjusted pricing, adapting digital services, and improving financial literacy for women.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s director of Women’s Economic Empowerment, Greta Bull stated, “Across Africa, women need access to more and better credit to support their entrepreneurial activities. Unequal access to credit remains a huge challenge that holds back economic activity and social progress, including for women in Kenya. This partnership will help remove some of the barriers women face in accessing affordable financing and will not only support women in getting businesses off the ground but will contribute to wider economic growth. It’s a win-win.”

The programme’s first scheme is going to be launched in the 4^th week of April. It shall improve the access to microfinance across the region in addition to being managed by KCB Bank Kenya which will be under their dedicated Female-Led and Made Enterprises (FLME) alongside KCB Foundation 2jiajiri initiatives.