Statement of the problem
Income-generating MSEs are and will continue in the foreseeable future to be one of the
main instruments of economic empowerment of women in Kenya. Donor agencies,
Non-governmental organizations and the government provide most of their aid for
income-generation through WGs. Some of these agencies lend or grant WGs funds for
specific MSEs which are selected, prepared, appraised, supervised and evaluated.
Some agencies, in addition, provide financial and technical advice to members of WGs.
The MSEs, in which donors and other agencies are keen to involve the beneficiaries
from their conceptual stage, channel funds directly to their bank accounts, and carry
out advocacy, often succeed. One of the best examples is the Kenda Kalaha Posho mill
project which has been operational since its inception nine years ago. Another example
is the Dairy Women’s Group in Nyeri which was reported to have uplifted the
members’ standards of living through income-generating activities (Republic of Kenya,
1997c). Kamuthanga and CEDPA Poultry Project in Ngamani also reported success.