Wayne, from Mombasa, Kenya, joined the Wings to Fly program at 16. His father passed away in 2010, leaving his family in financial difficulty. “My greatest challenge was overcoming the fear of failure.” he said. Now with a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science from Ashesi University, he seeks to empower other Kenyan youth with Software Development skills.

Despite the hard circumstances surrounding Mohammed’s childhood, he managed to do will in his KCPE Examination because of his resilience and hard work. However, his parents could not afford his high school tuition. Thanks to EGF’s Wings to Fly Program, Mohammed joined Lenana School and completed his secondary education. Currently he is pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at the University of Nairobi, and is an active mentor to the youth.

When my brother and his wife passed away, I took in their children in addition to mine. When I don’t have money to buy vegetables, I harvest some greens from my sack garden and cook for the children. The money I get from the program helps me to buy additional food, uniform and books.

I was registered in lopetun (local name for the Hunger Safety Net Program) after the community elders in the village noticed my hardship and recommended me into the program. I receive KES 5,400 which I use to pay school fees and buy food for my 8 children. I invest the balance in my business. Without HSNP, my children and I would have died long ago. Equity Bank provides excellent services. When payments are disbursed, we are promptly informed to go to our Equity agent, Joseph Sumba, to withdraw the money.

Having a stone-walled house has transformed my living conditions. Previously, thieves would use a blade to cut open the tent or insects would infest our living space during the night. Equity Bank facilitated access to electronic smart cards through which we obtained cash to construct permanent shelter. We were linked to construction material suppliers who would take stock of our purchases and provide a receipt. My family had a bit of money remaining from our allocation and we used it to cement the floor and paint the walls.

Kinyua, aged 23, completed college and due to unemployment ventured into agribusiness, buying sorghum from farmers and selling it in bulk. His greatest challenge had been lack of knowledge on which financial institution to partner with so as to access financial services and expand his business. Through the FASRAT project Kinyua received financial education,accessed two loans which have expanded his business. Through Equity Bank’s mobile MVNO, and Equitel.

Mr. Josiah, a retired teacher from Molo, does farming, but due to climate change and limited access to financial support business dwindled. Through FASRAT project Josiah received agribusiness and financial education. With the bank he managed to get a loan and installed a drip irrigation system & used rain harvested water to irrigate his crops. The 2019 rain delay didn’t affect his business. He is now generating a revenue of Ksh300, 000 per acre and makes KSh 5,000 for his potatoes during low season.

Celestine from Mombasa, has for the last 6 years been a beneficiary of Equity Group Foundation’s programs through which she has gained valuable skills in Digital Literacy, Entrepreneurship and Mentorship. She recently started her own supply business, African Memsap Technologies, offering construction and cleaning services while creating employment opportunities for young people and women. “I gained confidence, and have been able to manage my business better. The training enlightened me and I now run my business with a lot of seriousness and confidence”, she says.

Joel Nzuna is a farmer and adult learner from Machakos County. He produces maize, beans, fruits, livestock and other products. Resource planning and debt management skills were his main challenge. Through the foundation’s financial literacy program, he’s equipped with vital skills to set and plan for his goals. He is now able to plan his income and knows to handle debts. He says, “After the training, I feel good. I can plan my finances well and the debt burden is no more”. His improved financial management skills have enabled him to save and generate more funds for farming.

Lantaine is a mother of two and a member of Oltarakwai Women’s Group. She runs a Maasai beaded-clothes and milk business from her home in Kajiado, Kenya. Every day she does household chores, milks her husband’s cows and delivers milk to the local dairy co-operative. She and other co-operative members joined EGF’s Financial Education training program to learn budgeting, savings, financial services and debt management skills.  From the training she has been able to save enough money to build her family a better house. “I am considered a role model because as a member of Maasai Women Dairy Cooperative Ltd I have constructed my house”, says Lantaine.

Pam Automotives, Spares and Lubricants. Priscilla Akong’o Odengo hails from Eldama Ravine. She enrolled in EGF’s Digital Literacy, Entrepreneurship, Business Planning, Governance, E-Record keeping, and E-Marketing training program. Due to low sales, raising working capital for her business was a challenge.  Today, Pam Automotives also operates online, and its customer numbers have significantly grown. Priscilla provides employment to five people; 2 permanent and 3 part-time. Priscilla says, “Equity Group Foundation changed my life and my business. The Digital Literacy training I received and the mentorships that followed made me move from analogue to digital and has seen my business grow.”

Simion Makokha is a Florist based in Nairobi City Centre.  With no savings and additional income, he longed for rewarding income. Being a florist was hard and unpredictable. Simon joined Equity Group Foundation’s entrepreneur training where he learned how to make his business grow, properly budget his income. “With the help from our trainer, we managed to form a strong cohesive group of other people like me and we learned about our long-term and short-term goals in life which have helped us develop good money management skills and a saving culture,” Simon explains.

Susan hails from Kitui, is a member of Ngwani WFP Group and a beneficiary of EGF’s Financial Literacy Training.  She wanted to learn how to plan her finances, including borrowing. Before the training she explained that she had acquired a loan from a local commercial bank without clear consideration of her income. She was glad that the training exposed her to factors borrowers should consider before taking up loans. “Little did I know bank calculations have secrets which are concealed during lending,” she said.  

When he was selected as a beneficiary of the Equity Leaders Program, Dr. Anthony Kinyanjui did not know what the future held for him apart from having his education fee catered for. Currenly, Dr Kinyanjui is one of the beneficiaries trained as medical doctors who are now entrepreneurs in the health care sector through Equity Afia. He says,” This initiative has given me an opportunity to transform the lives of Kenyans through the provision of high quality and affordable healthcare. Equity Afia manages both curative and preventative healthcare services and we are now increasingly emphasizing on preventive care services”, says Dr Kinyanjui.

Karen Ndiema from Ongata Rongai believes that health care attendants should have the required skills in order to effectively treat patients. This is a key consideration for her when deciding what health facility to visit. She likes the general experience in Equity Afia but more specifically the fact that clinical staff spend sufficient time with the clients. She says ‘’After lab tests, the doctors discuss results with you- I have not seen this anywhere else. Doctors advise you on the results,one item after another- detailed information! This is the one thing that stands out for Equity Afia’’

“Since we got onboard EGF’s healthcare service in 2017, we have witnessed tremendous improvement in the health of our staff members. This is because they receive high quality treatment and medication. Another notable change is on the medical bills which have significantly gone down due to the friendly and affordable cost of health care in your facility. Of importance to note is the proximity of your health care centres to our staff members and their families. And not forgetting your friendly staff.”

George owns a 5 acre piece of land for his agribusiness farming. He is required to farm his land throughout the year to ensure a continuous supply of vegetables to the market. During dry seasons, George was forced to irrigate his land using buckets which was tiring and time consuming, and therefore could only farm a quarter of an acre. He then heard on radio about the SF2 solar Future Pump and purchased it since it requires no fuel to run, needs minimum maintenance and is portable.

In order to comply with the Energy Regulatory Commission’s regulation which requires any facility with hot water requirements exceeding 100litres a day to install a solar water-heating system, accompanied with their desire to save on their electricity bill that would amount to 2.3M a year, Abby Hotel attained a loan from Equity Bank. They installed Orb Sunstreams (water heating system), reducing over 60% of their energy expenses in a year. It’s a very reliable, efficient and affordable energy resource.

Lupingazi Youth Group, formed in 2008, has 19 active members. They have been beneficiaries of Equity Bank though saving and loan borrowing, as well as being a part of welfare activities. They are end users of energy stoves, having purchased eco-zoon stoves in 2016 through a facilitation from Equity Bank. From their experience and positive feedback they have been referring their friends to the program.

David Okinyi, 23, is from Migori, Kenya. He started with Equity Group Foundation’s programs at 18 years old in the `Wings to Fly’ Program with MasterCard Foundation. David graduated on 6^th May 2019 with a BSc in Economics and a B.A in Business (Global Politics) and will pursue his Master’s in Finance at Arizona State University,USA.