Financing Gateway for MSMEs goes live in Kenya

Conceptualised through collaboration between ITC and Farwell Innovations, Nairobi, the MSME Financing Gateway was developed through MARKUP in response to overwhelming demand from thousands of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and financial services providers following a survey in 2019 and 2020.

The Gateway allows users to see financing instruments, business and sustainable development services available in a country, filter, analyse and match them to their needs, then link directly to providers at no cost. In this way the platform is bridging the gap between MSMEs and financing and business development service providers, using a smart internet application.

The facility was introduced in Kenya in September 2021 through an interactive Webinar with more than160 participants hosted by the Kenya Private Sector Association (KEPSA) in partnership with the Kenya Bank Association. The event was particularly aimed at giving an opportunity to banks to register, review and update their information on the Financing Gateway Platform.

 The MSME Financing Gateway is now live and Kenyan companies can upload their business profiles and quickly identify service providers that match their needs.

The multi-lingual platform works on mobile phones, computers and tablets and is easy for hosts to maintain. Subscribers can receive notifications by e-mail or other media when changes occur or when new facilities and resources are announced. Providers can update their data through easy-to-use templates and an administrators’ workflow system.

MARKUP, through ITC, is also supporting the development of similar Gateways in Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania.