Ways to Help
MICRO FINANCE
Add a short descriptio
Kenya · Rwanda · Uganda · Nigeria
Small loans. Living water. Women farmers who thrive.
We lend to women farmers at about 8.5% a year — not the 34% local lenders charge — so they can buy seed, rent land and water their crops with low-cost micro-irrigation. Every loan repaid funds the next one.
Give $25 — fund a loanSee
Add a short descriptio
Kenya · Rwanda · Uganda · Nigeria
Small loans. Living water. Women farmers who thrive.
We lend to women farmers at about 8.5% a year — not the 34% local lenders charge — so they can buy seed, rent land and water their crops with low-cost micro-irrigation. Every loan repaid funds the next one.
Give $25 — fund a loanSee how it works
40%
of registered businesses in Uganda are owned by women
9%
of commercial credit is what they receive
~8.5%
yearly interest on our loans, vs 24–34% locally
92%
repayment, so each gift is lent again and again
The problemn.
THE PROBLEM
Women grow Africa's food. They are shut out of the credit to grow more.
Women run a large share of small farms and businesses across East and West Africa, yet banks rarely lend to them. Without collateral, the only loans on offer cost 24% to 34% a year, enough to wipe out a season's profit.
Land rules make it harder still: a widow can lose
Women grow Africa's food. They are shut out of the credit to grow more.
Women run a large share of small farms and businesses across East and West Africa, yet banks rarely lend to them. Without collateral, the only loans on offer cost 24% to 34% a year, enough to wipe out a season's profit.
Land rules make it harder still: a widow can lose the very fields she has farmed for decades. Women are often the better credit risk, but they are the last to be offered a fair loan.Add a short description.
HOW IT WORKS
Your gift is lent, repaid and lent again.
- 1You give
Any amount from $25 goes into the revolving loan fund of the country you choose. - 2Women borrow
Groups of five women borrow for seed, land rental, water, micro-irrigation and fertilizer, for two or more harvests a year. - 3They learn and grow
The Trust gives business and farm-management train
Your gift is lent, repaid and lent again.
- 1You give
Any amount from $25 goes into the revolving loan fund of the country you choose. - 2Women borrow
Groups of five women borrow for seed, land rental, water, micro-irrigation and fertilizer, for two or more harvests a year. - 3They learn and grow
The Trust gives business and farm-management training and ongoing counselling. Group members back each other up. - 4The money recycles
Repayments flow back into the fund and become the next woman's loan, season after season. Add a short description.
About Us
FAIR RATES
A loan she can actually pay back.
Our rate is about 8.5% a year before inflation, roughly a quarter of the market rate. Borrowers can add an optional 5% health plan that covers their family.
Yearly interest on a small farm loanLocal lender, no collateral34%Local lender, with collateral24%LivingWater, no collateral~8.5%
A LIFT CHANGED
“For five years my trees gave me nothing and I worked other men's fields by the day. Now I run my own farm.”
Tom, a farmer in Uganda, used a micro-loan to bring his farm back. He repaid it from his harvest, dug his own well, and now works his own land.
Help the next farmer like Tom Say something interesting about your business here.
RECEIVE A GIFT
Give $25, receive a personal keepsake.
Our sister company Sunnyside UP Production thanks every $25 donor with a personalized name meaning, sent over the internet. Keep it for yourself or give it to someone you love.
Name meaning
The story behind a first name, beautifully set
Where this is going: From one loan to whole community
Orchards and Nurseries
Each community is owned by its people through a national body, Living Water Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Eau Vivante du Rwanda, and run with a local technical school. Sites are chosen beside a waterfall or dam, so they can one day run on clean HUG hydro power.
Our own nurseries raise fruit and nut trees, intercropped with vegetables on blocks farmed by groups of women.
Water, fish and rabbits
Micro-irrigation and an aquaponic tree nursery, with fish and rabbit farming for food and income.
Skills that last
The school trains tractor operators, mechanics and computer users, and earns its own way through what it sells.