Our Impact
Over the last 29 years, our entrepreneur beneficiaries have tackled problems in their communities such as food security, sustainable food production, gender equality, climate change adaptation, low-cost housing, technology, as well as starting other businesses that are advancing sustainable community development.
Impact Metrics
Together with our partners, donors, and investors, we are creating sustainable impact for Southern Africa’s Black disenfranchised communities. Take a look at our impact to date:
2,299,932 Individuals Benefited
$131M Unlocked for Borrowers
$38M Guarantees
237,000 Microenterprises Assisted
1.9M Jobs Created
65 Coops, Entrepreneurs, & Lenders Supported
121,620 Homes Built
1:4:2 Capital Leverage Ratio*
*Shown as a ratio of the total value of loans made to borrowers vs. total value of guarantees issued by Shared Interest
Our Focus
Our Beneficiaries
Shared Interest is proud to have played a major role in capacity building for Southern African Black entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises who have benefited from our model, resulting in sustainable livelihoods, community development, and more equitable nations.
Maya Khonje Stewart of Lenziemill Milling in Malawi
Entrepreneur Maya Khonje Stewart of Lenziemill Milling in Malawi is addressing the lack of affordable protein that contributes to chronic malnutrition, which stunts 37% of Malawian children nationally – and more in rural areas. Fish are the main source of protein but overfishing in Lake Malawi has created price surges, making fish unaffordable for many Malawians. Although aquaculture is a natural solution to the lack of supply, farmers are not interested due to poor productivity and limited income potential.
In response, Maya Stewart is building a supply chain that allows smallholders to produce profitably and respond to overwhelming demand. She is piloting a production model to help farmers with start-up costs and reduce labor, creating high-quality floating feed that will allow fish to grow rapidly and be harvested more often.
Shared Interest guaranteed a $600,000 loan to fund the construction of the company's feed manufacturing facility and purchase inputs from 1,479 smallholder farmers. This work will support 1,500 fishers and transform the accessibility and affordability of quality protein for Malawians.
Sihlangene Bus Company in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
The Sihlangene Bus Company in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, was formed from the union of two taxi cooperatives and the Trans-Tugela bus company. This Black and female cooperative services a rural route awarded by the government as part of a program to bring peace to a region plagued by violence and taxi wars.
Sihlangene required 24 buses to operate effectively and consequently needed a loan. Shared Interest covered 40% of the guarantee, and Sihlangene repaid its asset finance loan of $1,742,218 in less than 3 years — rather than the original 5. The loan enabled the creation of 55 new jobs and services for low-income township residents.
Siyatfutfuka Cooperative in Eswatini
Made up of 27 women, this cooperative secured a loan to begin raising poultry. After the dumping of cheap chicken threatened their investment, they used the remaining funds to diversify into popcorn production, successfully selling to schools and supermarkets countrywide.
UN Sustainable Development Goals
Shared Interest is dedicated to serving the most underrepresented entrepreneurs in Southern Africa, thereby advancing six of the core United Nations SDGs.
Core Impact Goals
#1 No Poverty
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Promoting financial inclusion through access to traditional financial services to typically underserved businesses, entrepreneurs, and communities.
#5 Gender Equality
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Products and services empowering women and girls. Particular emphasis on women-led businesses.
#8 Decent Work & Economic Growth
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Investment in Small and Medium Enterprises, Agricultural Businesses & Cooperatives, Microfinance Institutions, and low-income housing and infrastructure organizations are the engines for job creation and economic growth.
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Equality of income and access to economic opportunities across ethnicity, gender, age, and social classes.
#10 Reduced Inequalities
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Investment in companies that hire more women and further income equality.
#13 Climate Action
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Working with and supporting businesses that promote climate adaptation strategies.
#17 Partnerships to Achieve the Goals
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Partnering to create blended finance structures in an effort to change the financial ecosystems of Southern African countries.
