Investing in Women in the Blue Economy in Kenya (IIW-BEK)-Small Businesses Window

The programme objectives are to:

• Support evidence-based programme interventions that support women’s economic participation in non-traditional sectors of the blue economy.
• Enhance private sector engagement of women as economic actors across the blue economy value chain.
• Increase private and public sector investment in women and young women-owned Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
• Reduce systemic gender inequalities that hinder women’s effective economic participation in the blue economy.

The SBW competitive business challenge has the following objectives.

• Enhance financial inclusivity for the women and young women-owned small enterprises operating in Kenya’s Blue Economy sector increasing access to credit, enabling market linkages, supply of inputs/ products/services along the value chain and creating employment.
• Provide targeted enterprise development services, and gender capacity and development support to small businesses.
• Advocate and increase awareness of the business case for investing in women in the Blue Economy in Kenya.
• Provide incentives for sustainable widespread adoption of climate-smart practices in Kenya’s Blue Economy.

Sectors

• Fisheries (deep sea /lake fishing, aquaculture, and mariculture),
• Productive use of renewable energy,
• Waste management (innovations on the conversion of waste to value),
• Biodiversity protection (marine and lake biodiversity protected areas),
• Tourism – provision of products and services for the tourism sector,
• Supply of inputs and services (e.g., access to finance, climate-smart technologies – aquatic blue food storage and transportation, market information etc.) and
• Social enterprises that reduce the burden of care for women and young women (e.g., day care child services).

Geography/Target Group

Women and young-women-owned small enterprises that are commercially active in the respective sectors of Kenya’s blue economy. The small enterprises must be located in one of the focus counties in the Lake Victoria basin and Coastal regions. Those with linkages to women and young women-owned micro-enterprises will be preferred.

Funding Information

• Minimum fund award of KSh 1,500,000
• Maximum fund award of KSh 6,000,000

Focus Areas

Focus counties include Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi, Tana River, Lamu, Taita Taveta, Busia, Siaya, Kisumu, Homabay and Migori.

Eligible Enterprises

IIW-BEK is targeting women and young women owned enterprises that will create sustainable operations that extend beyond the life of the five-year duration of the programme.

To be eligible for funding, the business must meet the following criteria:

• Request grant funding within the stipulated range.
• Be a for-profit enterprise that is aligned with the focus areas, i.e., geographical scope and sectors of focus.
• Demonstrate dominant female ownership (based on business ownership as well as their active decision making in the business) of the business and dominant representation of women employees, suppliers of raw materials, or distributors of products and/or services.
• The enterprise should produce business records (e.g. sale book, cash book) and financial records (e.g. bank statements, bank reconciliations, Mpesa till and/or paybill etc) for at least one (1) year, and a valid single business permit.
• Be able to show commitment to match AECF grant funding based on the ratios stated in matching contributions.
• Be compliant with fundamental laws and regulations in Kenya.
• Complete integrity due diligence checks conducted by AECF.
• Businesses not listed on the AECF exclusion list i.e., businesses supporting terrorism, production/trade of weapons, radioactive material, tobacco etc.
• Allow AECF regular due diligence and monitoring visits.

Selection Criteria

Each applicant will be evaluated and scored against the following criteria:

• Fulfilling the eligibility criteria.
• Demonstrated market demand of the business’ products and/or services amongst rural community populations especially the poor and vulnerable, with a clear vision to achieve sustainability.
• Present a business proposition that clearly highlight the participation of women and young women as beneficiaries of the business activities.
• Entrepreneurs’ ability – commitment and dedication of the key person providing leadership and direction on the business.
• Capacity of the project to deliver and sustain social impact, particularly on communities poor and vulnerable.
• Demonstrated capacity of the entreprenuer and team to implement the proposed business / project (adequate internal resources/capacity).

For more information, visit Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund.