FANAKA
Growing with you
Learn, Borrow, Insure.
Fanaka’s community-led financial innovation uplifts Zambia’s MSMEs especially women and youth owned ones. Advancing poverty eradication, economic equality, and sustainable growth.
The Opportunity Statement
In Zambia, 27.3% of adults own MSMEs; 98.8% are micro-sized; 95.6% operate informally and face immense barriers such as limited access to financial services, high borrowing costs, and low financial literacy. Women, representing over 60% of MSME owners, face disproportionate challenges in accessing capital and formalizing businesses
Key Challenges
- Only 6.5% of MSMEs have bank accounts, of whom 7.3% applied for loans (2017–22).
- 69% rely on personal funds due to barriers like high-interest rates and lack of collateral.
- 48% of MSME owners have only secondary education; low financial record‑keeping (28%)
- 46% adversely affected by recent economic shocks, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our Approach
Community Led Financial Inclusion
● We train local agents embedded in communities to provide on‑the‑ground credit application, collections, and financial literacy sessions.
● Flexible Microloans that take into account the business cash flow
● Microinsurance Linkage: Working with Bestlife Insurance, we connect the MSMEs to tailored micro insurance cover
● Mobile Money - 34.5% adoption vs 1.9% national savings-accounts
● USSD & App-based Repayments for rural reach
● Working with Learn.Ink to provide MSMEs with gamified microlearning (SDG Target 4.6.1)
● Local language content, offline‑enabled modules
TESTIMONIALS
Susan Mwanza
Grocery & Vegetable Seller
Lusaka Province
I started with just K1,000 from Fanaka in May 2024. Today, I’ve grown to K6,000. I’ve managed to pay school fees for my children and even purchased a plot of land. I love the flexibility — I can repay anytime, even at 22 hours!
N.o of jobs created for entrepreneurs
Women Entrepreneurs
youth (34 and under)
N.o of MSMEs onboarded/Served
Returning clients
Satisfied clients