Case Study
When we launched our East Africa Women's Fund three years ago, we knew we had an opportunity to change lives. The women we serve in rural Kenya had never had access to capital before—many had never even held a bank account.
Meet Grace, a 34-year-old mother of four who received her first microloan of $500 from our fund. Before we found her, Grace was struggling to feed her family, working in informal markets with no path forward.
"I never dreamed I could own my own business," Grace told our team during our site visit last quarter. "The loan from the fund changed everything. Now I have a small shop and my children can go to school."
Grace's story represents the kind of impact your investment is making possible. Since receiving our capital and training, Grace has:
Increased her monthly income by 300%
Hired two employees from her village
Sent all four children to school for the first time
Become a leader in her community
Our success speaks for itself: We've deployed $2.3M across 847 women entrepreneurs, with a 94% repayment rate and average income increases of 250%. We're not just providing capital—we're building a movement of empowered women who are lifting their entire communities out of poverty.
As we look toward our next fund, we're excited to scale this proven model to reach 5,000 more women like Grace who are waiting for someone to believe in them.
Reflection Questions
First impressions: What emotions does this narrative evoke in you as a reader? What about as someone who works in the impact space?
Power and perspective: Whose perspective does the story center? Whose voices are missing? How might Grace experience reading this report about herself?
The investor-investee dynamic: How does this narrative position the relationship between the fund and Grace? What assumptions does it make about agency, capability, and need?
Success metrics: Who defined "success" in this story? How might Grace define success for herself? What if her income increase was less dramatic—would her story still matter?
Scaling concerns: The report says they want to "reach 5,000 more women like Grace who are waiting for someone to believe in them." What does this language suggest about the fund's theory of change? What systemic issues does it overlook?