Equitel and M-Kopa among winners of MasterCard's Sh1 bn fund

M-Kopa solar CEO and founder Jesse Moore together with a customer Everline Adhiambo, receiving an energy saving jiko from one of the firm’s employees Njeri Gikami. FILE PHOTO | LILIAN OCHIENG

What you need to know:

  • The firms were awarded for innovations that scale up financial inclusion and access to services such as mobile banking, savings accounts, insurance and credit.

Equity Bank’s Equitel and solar energy firm M-Kopa are among four Kenyan winners of over Sh1 billion MasterCard fund meant to develop rural areas.

Other firms that will benefit from the kitty dubbed ‘The MasterCard Foundation Fund for Rural Prosperity 2015’ are APA Insurance, Musoni Kenya and Olam Uganda Ltd.

The companies were awarded for creative innovations that scale up financial inclusion and access to services such as mobile banking, savings accounts, insurance and credit.

"There were many impressive companies that entered this competition with proposals to scale up their work and make a real difference in the financial lives of people living in poverty," said Ann Miles, Director of Financial Inclusion & Youth Livelihoods at the MasterCard Foundation.

"These five, however, displayed an innovative approach backed by a solid business proposal and a commitment to excellence that convinced us to support their efforts," she added.

Kenyan startup M-Kopa, established in 2009 by Nick Hughes and Jesse Moore, is passionate about affordable energy and has so far connected over 280,000 homes across east Africa.

Equitel on the other hand was awarded for ensuring financial inclusivity through its mobile-based loans platform.

Many poor rural homes in Africa remain financially excluded, with the Sh1 billion fund targeting nearly eight million people in rural areas of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. It has set out with the ambitious aim to connect them with power, insurance and financial services by the year 2020.

Nick Hughes, the chief product officer and co-founder of M-Kopa said he hoped the project with MasterCard Foundation will help more low income Tanzanians access clean energy, agricultural inputs and financial services.