InsuranceOther financial services

Pula & M-KOPA secures $1.3mn grant from AfDB to support female entrepreneurs

Nairobi-based Pula Advisors and M-KOPA have just landed a $1.3mn grant from African Development Bank (AfDB) for research that will increase African women’s access to a range of digital financial services including loans and micro-insurance.

The grants, disbursed through the Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility, will see Pula Advisors use the $1 million for research of social, cultural and economic factors that impact women farmers’ access to microinsurance in Kenya, Nigeria and Zambia. Research findings will inform the design and implementation of gender-centric insurance products. The project will be undertaken over a 3-year time frame.

Read also: Not a popularity contest: Cutting through the noise of Incubator and Accelerator Programs in Africa


This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Application-Banner.jpeg

Apply For Funding GetFundedAfrica provides equity capital from $1,000 to $50,000. For larger amounts (Above $50,000) we organize syndicated funding rounds of up to $500,000. Apply Here

Why They Invested

“This grant funding will be used to leverage technology to develop innovative and responsive loan and insurance products that can spur productivity and inclusion, especially for our women smallholder farmers and traders.” said Sheila Okiro, the Bank’s Coordinator for ADFI.

The three-year project will have three phases: product development; piloting; and scaling; the outcomes are expected to benefit 360,000 farmers, 50% of them women, as well as boost farm yields by up to 30%. This will also raise incomes and enhance household and national food security.

Read also: KudiGo & Boost Ghana Bags $120k from the Catalyst Fund Inclusive Digital Commerce accelerator to promote SMMEs

M-KOPA will use the $300,000 grant funding for research involving 250 women and 250 men in Kenya’s Kisumu, Eldoret, and Machakos counties. The company will assess the barriers to and opportunities for women’s access to digital financial services and financial literacy programs via smartphone and use the research insights to design a financial services app that is relevant to small-scale women traders.

The project will benefit women with no or limited access to financial services that run small informal businesses. Once developed, the mobile app will be used to pilot small loans to women traders.

What You Need To Know About Pula

Launched in 2015 by Rose Goslinga and Thomas Njeru, Pula designs and delivers innovative agricultural insurance and digital products to help smallholder farmers endure climate risks, improve their farming practices and bolster their incomes over time.

Read the original article here

Nichole Manhire

Is the media and brand manager at GFA News. She works very closely with editors and podcasters that contribute to telling the African business success story. For marketing and advertising send Nichole an email: nichole@getfundedafrica.com

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button