How does the Small Business Fund work?
I talk a lot about our Small Business Fund program. Today I’m reposting my (updated) FAQs about how it actually works! 1. What is the SIA...
top of page
Search
SIA Team
Feb 2, 20162 min
Welcome another Small Business Fund coordinator team!
Spirit in Action is expanding and strengthening our Small Business Fund network! I met Naomi Ayot when I was visiting Kampala, Uganda in...
4 views0 comments
SIA Team
Jan 12, 20162 min
Small Business Success in Kenya!
Five small family businesses received $100 initial grants from Spirit in Action in March, 2015. These families live in Korogocho*, one of...
4 views0 comments
SIA Team
Dec 16, 20153 min
Listening to our Coordinators to Improve SIA
How far is it from Lilongwe, Malawi to Nairobi, Kenya? It doesn’t look so far on an ordinary map of Africa. But then, maps of Africa...
3 views0 comments
SIA Team
Dec 1, 20152 min
5 things making me happy: #GivingTuesday edition
Thanksgiving is a good kick-off to the giving season. Each year it’s a time when co-workers, the church, the media, and families start...
10 views0 comments
SIA Team
Nov 17, 20152 min
From skills training to employment
One of the exciting new groups that SIA is partnering with this year is Progressive Volunteers, a Kenyan grassroots organization that...
13 views0 comments
SIA Team
Sep 15, 20152 min
A time to renew our shared vision
“A time to renew our shared vision of working in the community so as to achieve a greater impact in alleviating poverty, and also share...
5 views0 comments
SIA Team
Aug 11, 20152 min
Steria’s Donuts
On Sunday morning, I shared donuts with fifteen kids aged 4-12 at my church. We were on a virtual trip to Malawi. Passports were stamped...
10 views0 comments
SIA Team
Aug 4, 20152 min
New grants!
The SIA Board of Directors gathered last month for our semi-annual meeting. If the mention of a meeting makes your eyes glaze over, let...
10 views0 comments
SIA Team
Jul 7, 20154 min
“A partner who has walked with us side by side”
[Above: A video snippet of Canaan’s speech; with Winkly Mahowe interpreting into the local language.] It was exactly a year ago that I...
25 views0 comments
SIA Team
Jun 23, 20152 min
How do their lives change?
Last week I highlighted the 5 most common businesses that Small Business Fund (SBF) grant recipients typically start. The groups received...
4 views0 comments
SIA Team
Jun 16, 20152 min
What kind of businesses do people start?
One of the unique parts of our SIA Small Business Fund program is that groups can start the business of their choice. We do not choose a...
7 views0 comments
SIA Team
Jun 2, 20152 min
Updates from Ghana and Kenya
Who’s that lady? Reader question! “I love the SIA newsletter. What is the story behind the pic of the beautiful woman with the lovely...
8 views0 comments
SIA Team
May 26, 20153 min
The Power of Hope
Finally! This week there was some great news about aid programs that really alleviate extreme poverty (less than $1.25/day). And – yay! –...
5 views0 comments
SIA Team
Apr 28, 20152 min
Pre-school students celebrate Easter in Malawi
A year ago, the first preschool in Manyamula village was started with a Small Business Fund grant. Nellie, newly divorced, moved to...
10 views0 comments
SIA Team
Apr 21, 20152 min
Success Story: “Darkness is cured”
Back in October 2012 I shared the success story of Hastings and Ruth Fuvu in Malawi. They had received a $150 Small Business Fund grant...
7 views0 comments
SIA Team
Apr 7, 20152 min
The rental market in Manyamula
I often mention that when families are successful in their Small Business Fund businesses they begin to invest in burned bricks for their...
10 views0 comments
SIA Team
Mar 24, 20153 min
Helping Businesses Succeed
This group of women meet twice a week to weave mats together under the trees. “People laugh when you are going [to market with your...
4 views0 comments
SIA Team
Mar 17, 20153 min
“Life has improved”: Updates from Kenya Small Business Fund
Wambui is the local coordinator in Nairobi, Kenya. We spent a week together in July 2014 evaluating and improving our Small Business Fund...
5 views0 comments
SIA Team
Mar 3, 20153 min
Better than Begging
We call our Small Business Fund grants “seed grants.” Sure, some of them may go to purchase actual seeds for family farms. The reason for...
5 views0 comments
Blog: Blog
bottom of page