Background
Why It Matters
Women living in marginalized communities often face significant barriers to economic empowerment. These challenges include limited access to education, training, and financial resources, as well as discrimination and stigma. It is against this backdrop that SheEO embarks on the struggle to curb these barriers by providing support and access to these women.
- Economic Disparity: Women constitute 58% of the self-employed in Africa but receive only 10% of the capital investments in startups
- Financial Exclusion: A little less than half as many women have access to formal financial services in comparison with their male counterparts; in Kenya, only 31% of them, as opposed to 55% of their male counterparts, are reached by formal financial services.
- Entrepreneurial Challenges: Women-led enterprises in Africa are usually charged higher interest rates and have more stringent loan conditions compared to their male counterparts
Our Impact
These are normally women who are microentrepreneurs, operating in the informal sectors and marginalized areas. Traditional banks and financial institutions have usually ignored this category of women in offering them adequate products and services. The SheEO Foundation bridges this gap in support needed to help these women succeed.
Our Commitment to Gender Equality
- Goal 5: Gender Equality: Empowering all women and girls, with a strong focus on financial inclusion.
- Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth: Promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.
Economic empowerment of women represents a reduced level of poverty, realization of gender equality, and a fair world. It, therefore, helps them take care of their families, send children to school, and give back positively to society.
Feasibility Study
Discoveries from our Survey with Micro-Entrepreneurs:
Among 100 micro-entrepreneurs interviewed, 85% identified a lack of financial skills as their primary challenge in business operations, often compounded by insufficient capital for scaling their enterprises.
Additionally, 70% of these entrepreneurs highlighted the crucial need for mentorship and financial management training as their key expectations from our Microenterprise Accelerator Program (MAP).
Interestingly, an overwhelming 97% of micro-entrepreneurs expressed that the primary barrier preventing them from accessing micro-enterprise accelerator programs or services is the lack of information and outreach.
Our Intervention
- We passionately strive to bridge the gaps through our Microenterprise Accelerator Program, designed to:
Upskill:
We equip entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills needed to master the financial aspects of their businesses, helping them navigate the intricacies of financial management.
Mentor:
Our seasoned mentors provide guidance, share insights, and inspire growth, ensuring entrepreneurs receive personalized support on their journey to success to unlock their full potential through our hands-on mentorship program.
Invest:
We understand the pivotal role capital plays in business growth. Through our social microfinance model, entrepreneurs gain access to the necessary capital, enabling them to scale their businesses, transforming their communities into flourishing economic hubs.