The World Bank has pledged to support the Hustler Fund to lift Kenya’s most vulnerable group. The pledge was made during a consultative meeting between President William Ruto and World Bank Regional Vice President for Eastern and Southern Africa, Victoria Kwakwa,
Ms Kwakwa said that the bank will offer the Hustler Fund technical and financial support.“The bank associates strongly with programs and initiative that empower the poor and most vulnerable. We will bring to the table ways to provide a safety net for these individuals.”
Ms Kwakwa added that the Bank will also support the country’s programmes against climate change.
The Hustler fund is a digital financial inclusion initiative designed by the Kenya Kwanza government to improve financial access to responsible finance for personal, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya.
President Ruto acknowledged the role the bank had played in the development of the country.
The President called on the Bank to scale up investment in programmes to increase agricultural productivity saying the government was working on the construction of dams and fertilizer subsidies among others.
“We are looking forward to your support in our development agenda,” he said.
The President had in his campaigns promised a new economic regime that would address unemployment and the lack of opportunities for low-income earners through affordable credit.
The president also pledged to pump in billions of shillings to support small traders such as mama mboga [grocery retailers] and the boda bodas [two-wheel taxi operators].