Road to Growth Programme Applications

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Are you ready to GROW your business?

Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, DHL Express and Sinapis are accepting applications for the 2021 Road to Growth program through our exciting partnership to bring crucial entrepreneurial skills and support to over 3,500 of Kenya’s most promising women entrepreneurs.

The Cherie Blair Foundation for Women’s flagship business skills training programme Road to Growth is delivered to women entrepreneurs in Kenya for the first time. 200 women will be selected to undertake an intensive, seven-week financial literacy and investment readiness training course.

The Road to Growth Programme is right for you if you:

• Have registered your business
• Have 3+ employees
• Demonstrate a strong growth trajectory
• Have a deep understanding of your business and its goals
• Are looking to access finance

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This Road to Growth initiative consists of two components: the Foundation’s award-winning business skills app HerVenture and its intensive, online 7-week investment readiness training programme Road to Growth, brought to Kenya for the first time. The partnership builds on the successes of the Foundation and DHL’s piloting of HerVenture in Kenya last year, which was met with a target-breaking uptake and wide praise as over 1,200 women entrepreneurs used it to achieve growth and protect their businesses against the impacts of the pandemic. The Sinapis team has helped over 3,000 women gain access to the critical training through the HerVenture app in the past few months.

This enhanced support comes at a crucial time: the Foundation recently released its 2020 annual audit of research on women entrepreneurs in low and middle income countries, drawing on responses from women across 32 countries including Kenya. The research report illustrates the stark impacts of COVID-19 on women entrepreneurs and other major barriers they face—such as gender stereotypes, legal challenges and lack of access to finance. Nearly four in ten (38.5%) women report their business will or may have to close as a result of the pandemic, potentially spelling disaster for children, families and staff. The report makes clear that targeted, urgent action and support is needed.

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Everline Achieng is a Fishmonger in Kayole and sells Omena (silver cyprinid) in the streets of Kayole. She buys the Omena in kilograms depending on the buying habits of the consumer. She started her business in 2011 and her business had been stagnant for a while until she learnt about the HerVenture app in 2020 which changed her perception on business.

Two ladies found her working at her station in Kayole and told her about HerVenture and has never looked back since downloading it and going through the content. Everline learnt about integrating customer and market feedback which helped her learn to value her customers, which has helped increase her sales.

Now Everline is able to buy a gunny sack and sell it to her customers and make more profit. Everline is aspiring to learn more on the application and apply the lessons learnt. She is hoping to become a producer of Omena to other vendors in Kayole in the near future.