Project profile — Equitable Prosperity Through Private Sector Development in Kenya

• Kenya (100.00%)

• Communication: Information and communication technology (ICT) (22040) (5.00%)
• Industry: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) development (32130) (85.00%)
• Trade Policy And Regulations And Trade-Related Adjustment: Trade education/training (33181) (10.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (principal objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (not targeted)
• Trade development (principal objective)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (significant objective)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (significant objective)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (significant objective)
• Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) (not targeted)
• Nutrition (not targeted)

The project aims to create sustainable economic growth and reduce economic disparities by supporting the development of profitable, competitive small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the agriculture, construction and extractives sectors in Kenya. The project expects to reach 20,000 women and men entrepreneurs to manage successful businesses and sustain the profitability and competitiveness of 250 targeted SMEs/lead firms who respond to market opportunities. Project activities include: (1) conducting a study on the supply chains, or sequence of processes involved in the production and distribution of commodities, in the agriculture, construction and extractives sectors; (2) training and providing advisory services to small entrepreneurs to help them improve their business plans, business models and market analyses; (3) establishing strategic alliances among small entrepreneurs, traders, SME suppliers, and financing entities; and (4) facilitating Kenyan private equity investment firms' investment in frontier SMEs.

The expected intermediate outcomes for this project include: 1) increased enterprise profitability and community-economic growth led by targeted female and male small entrepreneurs who apply gender-equitable and environmentally sustainable practices in the selected sectors and locations; and 2) improved profitability and competitiveness of targeted SMEs who respond to market opportunities while applying gender equitable and green business practices in the selected sectors and locations.

Results achieved as of March 2022 include: (1) increased profitability, competitiveness and resilience of Kenyan women and men in small enterprises to facilitate more equitable distribution of wealth in high-poverty, drought-prone and food-insecure counties across the country while applying gender-equitable and climate-smart business practices; (2) increased incomes, employment and production of 52,090 small entrepreneurs and smallholder farmers (of whom 54% are women) through access to innovative and environmental technologies, markets, enhanced knowledge and business alliances. They achieved these results by working with 25 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) acting as lead firms (of which 24% are women-led), primarily in the agribusiness sector; (3) provided business development and advisory services through intermediary organizations to an additional 276 SMEs (of which 58% are women-led); and (4) attracted more than CAN$16 million in private capital made available to Kenyan SMEs through partner private equity funds, which allowed 43 SMEs (of which 30% are women-led) supported by this project to benefit from the funding to expand their business operations and access to external markets.

• Proactive disclosure