Digital skills empower women to grow small businesses

In Nairobi’s informal settlements, small businesses provide an important lifeline for many women, but limited access to markets, customers and business opportunities can make growth difficult.

In Mathare, community organiser and entrepreneur Jane Kanyiva is using digital technology to address some of these challenges while helping young mothers in her community build stronger livelihoods.

Kanyiva founded Young Her Initiative, a community organisation that brings together and supports teen mothers. The group currently has 25 young women and focuses on empowering them socially, economically and spiritually.

Her commitment to supporting young mothers is shaped by her own experience. Kanyiva became a mother as a teenager and faced stigma, discrimination and limited access to information and support.

“I don’t want any other woman to experience what I experienced,” she says.

Through Young Her Initiative, the young mothers participate in table banking, where they save together and access small loans to start or strengthen businesses. Some use the money to buy vegetables such as tomatoes and onions from markets and resell them to earn an income for their families.

Kanyiva is also an entrepreneur herself. She has operated a second-hand ladies’ clothing business for the past eight years, a journey she says has required persistence.

“The journey has not been smooth, but every day I wake up and push myself and trust in God that things will be okay,” she says.

Taking Her Business Online

Through KICTANet’s EmpowerHer programme, Kanyiva has learned how digital platforms can help her promote products, connect with customers and manage her finances.

She has learned to create product catalogues on WhatsApp Business, including photographs, descriptions and prices. Facebook Marketplace gives her another avenue to find customers, while TikTok allows her to showcase products through live sessions and interact with potential buyers.

The training has also introduced her to Pochi la Biashara, which allows business owners to receive payments separately from their personal mobile-money accounts.

“KICTANet has made everything very simple. They have simplified every topic that we are talking about,” she says.

The CARE-funded EmpowerHer programme is being implemented in Nairobi, Tana River and Nyandarua counties, with a target of reaching 15,000 women. It combines digital and financial skills with community support to help participants use technology for economic empowerment.

For Kanyiva, however, the value of the training goes beyond improving her own enterprise.

Sharing the Knowledge

She is expected to mobilise and train at least 50 women in her community, but hopes to reach between 150 and 200.

“I was telling myself from the first day that I may want to mobilise more than 50—maybe 150 or 200,” she says.

Her first target is the young mothers she already works with. She wants them to learn how to promote their products online, find new customers and increase their income.

She also hopes the women she trains will pass the knowledge to others, creating a wider network of women who can benefit from the skills.

“If I mobilise 100 women, I believe those 100 women will train another 100 women,” she says.

Kanyiva believes the skills can be particularly useful in Mathare, where many women operate businesses without formal premises.

“I can’t wait to see women in Mathare using the digital tools we have learned about to showcase and market their businesses,” she says.

She views digital literacy as an increasingly important part of running a business.

“Everything is going digital because that is the way the world is moving, and it is a good thing. We should all embrace it and empower ourselves as women and as a community,” she says.

Opening Doors to New Markets

Jane Gachure, Director of Gender and Inclusivity at Nairobi City County, said the training is designed to give women practical skills that can help them expand their enterprises.

Participants are trained as Trainers of Trainers (ToTs), enabling them to take the knowledge back to their communities and support other women.

Gachure said the initiative also reflects the county government’s commitment to vulnerable groups, including women, young people and persons with disabilities.

“Our Governor’s manifesto talks about supporting vulnerable groups. This is why we emphasise inclusivity. We do not want to leave anyone behind when it comes to development or the county’s programmes,” she says.

She noted that high rental costs can prevent many women from accessing formal business spaces. Online platforms, she said, offer an alternative way for entrepreneurs to display and sell their products.

“Physical spaces are not always enough, and some women, particularly those who are vulnerable, cannot afford to rent business premises. It would therefore be good to expand their spaces digitally so that they can use their smartphones to sell their goods and reach customers,” she says.

Helping Women Build Stronger Businesses

Dr Grace Githaiga, CEO of KICTANet, said the programme responds to the need to help women running small enterprises make better use of technology to grow their businesses.

“Many women are doing small businesses, but they are not growing, and they are also not utilising technology in ways that can enhance their businesses,” she says.

The training combines digital and financial skills, covering mobile-money services, savings, loans and ways of tracking business income and expenditure.

Githaiga said some entrepreneurs struggle to grow because money generated from their businesses is often redirected to household needs, including school fees, medical expenses and contributions to savings groups.

Participants are therefore encouraged to separate business capital from personal income and track their expenditure so they can make informed decisions and retain enough money for restocking or expansion.

The programme also addresses online safety, introducing participants to cyber hygiene practices such as using strong passwords, changing them regularly and being cautious about online interactions.

“Even freedom on the internet has limitations. The same things you can’t do offline, you should not do them online,” she says.

She urged participants to use digital platforms responsibly while respecting the rights of others online.

“Most important is just to be a good human being,” she says.

The programme will continue with follow-up support as participants apply the skills and share them with other women in their communities.

The initiative is part of KICTANet’s wider work as a multi-stakeholder think tank focused on ICT policy and regulation through research, policy advocacy, capacity building and stakeholder engagement.

Through programmes such as EmpowerHer, the organisation seeks to strengthen women’s ability to use technology safely and effectively while creating greater opportunities for economic participation in the digital economy.

For Kanyiva, that opportunity is already becoming a reality. She hopes to see more women in Mathare turn their smartphones into business tools, using them to showcase their products, connect with customers and build more sustainable livelihoods.