Kenyan startups to receive Sh400m from German firm to alleviate poverty

Yunus Social Business (YSB), a Germany-based social entrepreneurship organisation that promotes businesses that use technology to address poverty, food security, climate change, and other issues, is set to invest more than Sh400 million in at least five Kenyan startups.

Startups in the energy, financial services, and waste management industries are anticipated to use technology to alleviate poverty.

Prof Muhammad Yunus, President of Grameen Foundation and co-founder of YSB, has encouraged Kenyan businesses and startups to use technology to address challenges like as poverty, food insecurity, climate change, waste management, and insecurity, among others.

Burn Manufacturing, Deevabits Green Energy (DGE), and Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment Centre (WEEE Centre) are among the startups.

Prof Yunus has also encouraged the government to reform some of the systems, laws, and legal frameworks that are impeding enterprises that use technology to relieve poverty.

Food insecurity

“Poverty is not created by poor people but by the systems we have in place, policies made and the legal frameworks created in the specific countries and in order to alleviate poverty the systems and policies have to be fixed, and tech is a major way to go about it,” he says.

Four Kenyan technology companies – Chiro, Kambare, Kilimo Africa, and Rafiki Carbon – also offered ways to end food shortages and boost waste management.

They were asked to demonstrate how, for example, in the case of food security, technology may be used to mobilise information and optimise food distribution between food-secure and food-insecure areas, as well as to align food supply with food demand by providing farmers with appropriate information.

“The winner of the Hackathon was Kilimo Africa, a company that offers trainings to farmer groups and individuals, trainings to farm managers, soil testing services, mobile and on farm consultancy, farm layout plans as well as farm budgeting for all enterprises and development fertilizer and spray programs,” Yunus Social Business said.

Poverty reduction

“The judges found their concept to have potential for impact and scale, their business model scalable and included a solution to farmers and the entire ecosystem. Kilimo Africa will benefit from a mentorship program by Yunus Social Business that will help them refine their business model and position them for funding.”

Former Makueni Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana, who was present at a Hackathon event co-hosted by Moringa School, noted that while grassroots economics has been shown to be more effective in poverty reduction around the world, his attempt to implement it in Makueni as governor was hampered by legal and licencing barriers.

Prof Kibwana stated that the strategy has the ability to eliminate poverty and enhance Kenyans’ livelihoods.

“YSB brings corporate purpose to life by co-creating new social business ventures, and helping corporations collaborate with innovative social businesses,” the organization says.