Equity Bank Kenya claims its mission is to empower clients and stakeholders, both socially and economically.
The Nairobi-based lender’s corporate responsibility foundations are built on the Equity Group Foundation (EGF), the corporate foundation it formed in 2008 with a mandate to serve and protect the most vulnerable citizens. Every year, 2% of the bank’s annual revenues are set aside to fund the foundation’s charitable endeavours.
It is led by James Mwangi, managing director and chief executive of Equity Group.
Equity Bank Kenya primarily targets campaigns that improve educational performance and health facilities. Its Wings to Fly and Elimu scholarship programmes provide financial support to thousands of high-school students; as of the end of 2023, 97% of Wings to Fly students had completed school, with 82% going on to secure an undergraduate degree.
Accessing affordable healthcare is one of the key challenges facing citizens and governments in Equity Group Kenya’s stronghold in eastern Africa; the problem is exacerbated by rising healthcare costs and a shortage of trained medical professionals. As of the end of 2023, the bank’s foundation had opened 98 health clinics in Kenya, including at least one in each of the nation’s 47 counties.
Financial inclusion is another area of focus. The foundation promotes the use of renewable energy, helping households and corporates to transition to more efficient and environmentally friendly forms of energy. Since its creation, more than 420,000 households have been provided with renewable products and technologies, impacting 1.7 million individuals and cutting carbon-dioxide emissions by an estimated 500,000 tonnes. Over the past 15 years, the foundation has funded the planting of more than 25 million trees.
Every year, 2% of Equity Bank Kenya’s annual revenues are set aside to fund its foundation’s charitable endeavours
The bank’s corporate foundation is also helping farmers in rural east Africa to improve their financial education and bring them into the formal financial system. To date, EGF has provided financial mentoring and training, and agribusiness skills, to 3.8 million farms and nearly 250,000 micro, small and medium-sized agricultural enterprises.
Another notable programme is Young Africa Works Kenya, a five-year programme created jointly by the bank, its foundation and the Mastercard Foundation. Its aim is to create 810,000 jobs in Kenya by helping more than 150,000 MSMEs access finance, grow capital, gain scale and hone their business models.
As of the end of 2023, Ks259.3 billion ($2 billion) in loans had been disbursed to these smaller enterprises, creating around 1.27 million new jobs, more than 80% of which were secured by young people.
