This archive report was first published on 6 July 2020.
Published on July 6, 2020, a report on the status of the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) has shed light on the dismal uptake of loans by women in arid and semi-arid regions of Kenya.
The WEF, a flagship programme of Kenya's Vision 2030 blueprint, aims to enable women, youth, and the disabled access funds to promote businesses and enterprise at the constituency level, thereby enhancing economic growth.
However, the report shows that female entrepreneurs in eight arid and semi-arid land (ASAL) counties have only taken Sh600.4 million, or slightly above three percent, of the total Sh18.32 billion disbursed under the fund since 2007.
West Pokot County has the lowest uptake, with women having taken Sh39.8 million, followed by Mandera County at Sh52.3 million. Marsabit and Samburu counties also rank low, with Sh59.6 million and Sh86.1 million, respectively.
Cabinet Secretary for Public Service Margaret Kobia painted a grim picture of the growing gap in the economic empowerment of women, stating that more needs to be done to ensure the fund serves its intention uniformly across the country.
Despite sensitisation programmes in the far-flung regions, the low uptake of loans contradicts the ministry's stand that more women are applying for the cheap credit.
According to Prof Kobia, a joint grassroots approach dubbed Huduma Mashinani has enabled more rural communities to engage with economic empowerment programmes, increasing uptake.
However, the dismal uptake of loans in the ASAL counties brings to fore perennial hurdles where women bear the brunt of economic marginalisation and pervasive traditions that continue to relegate them behind men in regions where pastoral livestock keeping is key.
Women in Garissa County have the lowest loan repayment rate, at 0.73 percent, followed by those in Mandera and Nyamira at 0.79 percent. On the other hand, women in Nyeri top the list in loan repayment, with a rate of 1.04 percent.
