KNCCI and Mastercard Foundation partners for COVID-19 recovery and resilience program

Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) and the Mastercard Foundation had signed a partnership that will see 25,000 Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya benefit from an interest-free, zero-fee short-term concessional loan.

The COVID-19 Recovery and Resilience Program will be implemented by KNCCI through its county chapters across the 47 counties.

Through the Mastercard Foundation COVID-19 Recovery and Resilience Program, KNCCI will target businesses owned by youth (18-35 years), women-owned (18-70 years), and enterprises that support a large number of youth (18-35 years) that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this program is to assist the MSMEs to ensure business continuity and sustainability.

The target businesses need to have been in existence for at least one year and have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. These businesses will mainly be drawn from the sectors of hawkers, Jua Kali, retailers, the fashion industry, and restaurants.

The facility is a revolving fund, available to repeat borrowers upon repayment of the loan within two months. The funds will not be available to businesses that sell drug-related substances including alcohol and tobacco, manufacture weapons, and are involved in war-related activities, in gambling and betting sectors, in sex-related industries, or are owned by the state or parastatal actors.

KNCCI will pre-screen applications from eligible applicants. Applications received from affected businesses will be pre-screened against a set eligibility criterion before approval and the disbursement of funds.  The loans will be administered by the Grassroots Business Fund (GBF) and Fourth Generation Capital (4G Capital).