NCBA has officially greenlit the next phase of its ambitious female-focused agribusiness initiative. The bank has launched the second cohort of the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) Acceleration programme, pledging an additional USD 3.5 million in financing.
The initiative, delivered in a powerhouse partnership with the African Guarantee Fund (AGF), Unga Group Plc, and the SME Support Centre (SSC), is specifically designed to propel women-led agri-food enterprises from survival to scale.
This second cohort welcomes 42 women agripreneurs into the fold, building directly on the momentum of an incredibly successful inaugural phase. During the first round, NCBA successfully disbursed USD 1.3 million (Ksh. 163 million) to female-owned agribusinesses.
However, the partners are quick to point out that capital alone isn’t a silver bullet. The program pairs financial backing with rigorous business training, mentorship, and capacity-building to ensure these enterprises can sustain growth over the long haul.
“This programme aims to support women business owners across the agricultural value chain who often face additional structural constraints,” explained Dennis Njau, NCBA Group Director of Retail Banking. “Through an integrated approach comprising access to skills, markets, and finance, this partnership is a clear demonstration of our Ubuntu philosophy in motion, enabling productivity by building solutions around what truly matters to our customers.”
The entrepreneurs selected for this cohort operate across critical sectors, including human food production and animal feed manufacturing. This places them squarely at the center of Kenya’s food security agenda.
Historically, securing lines of credit for agricultural ventures, especially for women, has been an uphill battle. By de-risking the lending process, the financial ecosystem is finally evolving to meet them halfway.
Key pillars of the partnership
- Through the AFAWA framework, the Africa Guarantee Fund is actively lowering credit barriers. “By de-risking lending, we are enabling financial institutions to extend more capital to women entrepreneurs, ultimately driving inclusive growth and job creation,” noted Patrick Lumumba, AGF Group Director of Capacity Development.
- Unga Group Plc steps in as the practical learning partner. Group Managing Director James Nyutu emphasized that equipping women with technical expertise and exposure to scalable business practices “strengthens not just individual businesses, but the entire ecosystem that supports food production in Kenya.”
- The SME Support Centre (SSC) ties the technical and financial pieces together. SSC CEO Linda Onyango highlighted that combining practical training, on-site support, and NCBA’s financial linkages is what enables “real, sustainable business growth.”
The ripple effects of this $3.5 million injection are projected to be substantial. By the end of this phase, the intervention is expected to:
- Directly support and scale 80 women-owned SMEs across both cohorts.
- Create approximately 300 new jobs within the agricultural value chain.
- Enhance the resilience of local food systems against economic shocks.