The African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (AFRACA) received US dollars 500,000 from the Danish Development Agency (DANIDA) to build the capacity of the economically active rural women to save and make full use of credit accessed to build better lives free from chronic hunger and ravaging poverty

The overall objective of the project is to provide an economic base for targeted rural women who have no credit facilities in the selected rural areas of Kenya, Tanzania Zambia and Mozambique.

The specific objective of this project is to increase and improve capacity of targeted rural women entrepreneurs especially for the rural women entering into funded businesses for the first time in rural areas of the Western part of Kenya, Rural part of Central Zambia, Countryside of Tanzania and Mozambique.

The target groups are poor women who are involved in some form of business as well as those women who have the potential to start and run a business successfully. It is expected that most of these women will be involved in some level of commerce and trade.

Providing access to financial Services to rural women in three countries while building capacity to implementing institutions of grassroots communities in Zambia, East and Southern Africa - in Zambia, Kenya and Lesotho.

The project is being implemented by a consortium of microfinance institutions in Africa comprising financial institutions; Kenya women Finance Trust, Micro bankers Trust of Zambia, Pride Tanzania and FMD of Mozambique. The networks of INAFI and AFRACA will coordinate the project.

Project Impact

The project will help the institutions involved to gain significant progress in achieving gender equality. With the financial assistance and knowledge that will be imparted, the lives of women will be improved.

Women will be empowered once they begin to earn some income, they will be more involved in decision-making at household level. This will bring the family more close.

The economic status of women will be improved as they grow their business and begin to make profits. Women will be able to have less worry about how they will feed their families creating a more educated and healthy society.

The results from women activities will benefit the whole household.