Increasing Access to Finance for Agribusinesses

Gift of Caring Ministryis implementing Agribusiness for Market Stimulations program to bolster trade by increasing access to financing for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) engaged in agribusiness in Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi. The core of the program supports lending to banks through a $50 million loan guaranty facility (LGF) backed by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). Gift of Caring Ministrycomplements this LGF with technical support to partner banks and agribusiness SMEs, including cooperatives, farmer associations and savings and credit cooperatives.

AIMS KEY ACHIEVEMENTS AS OF JULY 2019

  • More than 150,000 SMEs identified with 2000 of these being direct beneficiary of AIMS
  • More than 93 BASPs prequalified and working with Gift Of Caring
  • Disbursement of 12,564 loans related to agribusiness with value of USD 262,000,000 as a result of training of more than 360 staff from 40 banks resulted in the
  • Actualized quantities of agricultural commodities sold across grain, horticulture and livestock value chains during AIMS-supported business to business forums (B2Bs) amounts to 1,300,000 metric tons. The value of actualized sales is USD 788,000,000
Improving Health Outcomes for Adolescent Girls and Young Women

In partnership with USAID, implements the DREAMS initiative in the Pumwani Ward of Nairobi, which is one of several countries where the initiative is being implemented. Gift of Caring Ministryand its local partners are working with adolescent girls and young women between 10 and 24 years of age from the Pumwani Ward and the greater community emphasizing healthy sexual behaviours including abstinence and delayed sexual debut; gender norms; prevention  of  gender- based violence (GBV); life skills; prevention of drug and alcohol abuse; adherence to Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) as applicable; positive attitudes towards people living with HIV; stigma reduction and livelihoods and positive health-seeking behaviours. This is being accomplished using a two-pronged approach  –  blending customized, individual support to adolescent girls and young women, as well   as strengthening of education, health, social and economic systems in order to create positive lasting impact on at-risk adolescents and young women and the greater community.

DREAMS KEY ACHIEVEMENTS

Since 2015, DREAMS has:

  • Empowered over 12252AGYW to build social capital, networks and assets that improve their livelihoods, improve their health dimensions and make them less likely to be victims of sexual harassment and violence.
  • Reached 22719 AGYW with age appropriate health education utilizing Evidence Based Interventions (Healthy Choices for a Better Future, My Health, My Choice and SHUGA II) that have enhanced health-seeking behaviour among AGYW and enabled them to make informed decisions about their reproductive health.
  • Reached 9020 AGYW were reached with Gender Norms transformation & GBV prevention training provided over 11900 AGYW with information on healthier and safer sexual practices.
  • Supported over 5500 AGYW with social protection services
  • Trained over 9700 AGYW on financial literacy skills, leading to better money management and a culture of saving.
  • Provided family planning education to 6000 adolescent girls and young women and strengthened family planning systems to become more responsive and youth-friendly.
  • Equipped over 3100 parents and caregivers of adolescent girls and young women with primary prevention messages to that reduce sexual risk among adolescents and promote parent-child communication about sexuality.
  • Provided education subsidy support to over 4138 adolescent girls and young women and improved their school access, retention and transition.
Promoting Cooperative Development for Sustainability

Gift of Caring Ministryis implementing Enabling Market Integration through Rural Group Empowerment (EMIRGE), a cooperative development and learning program funded by the EMIRGE. EMIRGE focuses on stimulating early- stage cooperation by responding to a member-driven agenda and strengthening social capital and organizational capacity to advance the group enterprise and increase incomes. It provides technical support to communitybased organizations, government cooperative institutions, donor programs and private sector initiatives. EMIRGE operates in Mongolia, Rwanda and, since January 2016, in Kenya. The field activities are part of a larger Global Cooperative Learning Program that builds on the experiences of cooperative members, private sector stakeholders and program implementers focusing on how cooperatives can impact members, their communities and markets around the world.

In Kenya, EMIRGE focuses on how to effectively leverage the power of collective resource to improve the livelihoods of urban youth. Many youth initiatives require young people to form groups to access services and support. More often than not these this approach fails to result in the viable incomes   and outcomes. The EMIRGE initiative involves research on how youth can form effective member owned cooperatives, which will pave the way for collaborative design and implementation of pilot programs.

RECENT PROGRAMS
Conflict Mitigation and Civil Society in Slum Communities

The informal settlements in Nairobi are among the area’s most vulnerable to political and ethnic manipulations. These slums contain some of Kenya’s most at-risk populations due to high unemployment, cramped living spaces, and marginalization from mainstream society. Ethnic divisions within these slums are exacerbated by political and non-political issues such as access to basic services, and religious and cultural differences. The opportunity for conflict is rife, threatening the peace and prosperity promised in the new constitution. Gift of Caring Ministryimplemented the Tuna Uwezo program, which worked to reduce politically-motivated conflict in these settlements. The program strengthened social networks of community members and civil society groups to collaborate productively on community issues and address grievances. Working   with partners, PeaceNet and Kituo Cha Sheria, Gift of Caring Ministryengaged residents, especially young people through multiple channels to ensure broad community acceptance and to reduce resistance within and among identity groups. Simultaneously, Gift of Caring Ministrybuilt the capacity of community leaders and groups to work effectively with one another across ethnic lines and developed the technical and organizational capacity of local partners to ensure the sustainability of program activities. Learn more about the Kenya Tuna Uwezo program.

Building Local Capacity to Treat HIV/AIDS

Through a partnership with the Regional Society for Blood Transfusion Kenya (RSBTK), and with funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Gift of Caring Ministryhelped strengthen the national blood transfusion system in Kenya. Gift of Caring Ministryworked with the Kenyan National Blood Transfusion Service to ensure a safe and sufficient blood supply and blood products to health facilities in Kenya.

Protecting and Restoring Economic Sustainability to Ensure Reduced Vulnerability Plus (PRESERV+)

Through the Protecting and Restoring Economic Sustainability to Ensure Reduced Vulnerability Plus (PRESERV+) project with funding from USAID/OFDA, Gift of Caring Ministryassisted more than 30,000 people by protecting livelihoods through improved access to income and agricultural support. This was accomplished by integrating emergency cash assistance with agricultural inputs and training for affected farmers. Capacity building and training focused on increasing yields by using drought- appropriate planting methods and promoting agriculture-based income generation. PRESERV+ also included cash-for-work to support agricultural production through activities such as the construction    of water harvesting systems and other activities that bolster agricultural production.