In the early morning haze of rural Siaya, a woman ties her headscarf, stirs a pot of porridge, and sees her children off to school. But today, instead of heading alone to the roadside market, she joins 20 other women in the community hall. Together, they plan how to deliver crates of fresh vegetables to a supermarket chain.
A year ago, she earned barely enough to get by. Today, she’s part of a women’s collective, a WEE Collective, that has doubled her income, connected her to new markets, and given her a voice in local leadership.
Such stories cement women as the backbone of rural and urban economies across Kenya. They grow the food, run the markets, manage small businesses, and keep households afloat. Yet for decades, their economic potential has been limited, not by lack of skill or ambition, but by systems that make it harder for them to access credit, markets, and decision-making tables.
Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Collectives are changing this reality. They are not charity groups. They are not temporary projects. They are living, breathing networks of women pooling their knowledge, resources, and energy to build enterprises that last.
Through the CRAWN Trust leadership, these collectives have grown from isolated initiatives into a model with national relevance, one that donors and partners can scale into a powerful driver of Kenya’s inclusive growth.
The reports show that since inception, over Kshs.15.3 million has been mobilized through savings, investment, and group contributions , a sign of the model’s sustainability.
What are Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Collectives?
At their core, WEE Collectives are women-led groups committed to a shared economic purpose. The model is simple but powerful. When women work together, they create bargaining power, reduce risks, and open doors that are often closed to individuals.
From the reports, these collectives have taken many forms:
- Dairy cooperatives pooling milk for sale to processors
- Artisan groups crafting beadwork and textiles for local and export markets
- Agricultural teams supplying schools, supermarkets, and hospitals
- Digital hubs equipping women with online sales and e-payment skills
Pooling resources means no one stands alone in negotiation or production. A single woman might find it impossible to secure a large buyer. Twenty women, organized and ready, become a serious market player.
“Pooling resources has given us access to markets we could never reach alone.” WEE Collectives End of Project Report, 2023
It’s a principle that makes economic sense and human sense: together, women can take steps that would be too costly, risky, or exhausting to take alone.
Why are WEE Collectives Critical for Kenya’s Development Agenda?
Kenya’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) recognizes that grassroots-led growth is essential. But growth will remain uneven if half the population is left behind. WEE Collectives directly answer this gap.
They tackle three persistent barriers in one model:
- Land access, Group registration allows women to lease or co-own productive land.
- Credit access, Collective savings and microloans bypass restrictive bank requirements.
- Market access, Aggregated production meets the scale and consistency that larger buyers demand.
The impact is already visible. From the reports:
- 2,038 women trained in entrepreneurship, market systems, and leadership.
- Incomes in some collectives doubled within a year.
- Women are increasingly represented in local development committees and leadership roles.
For donors, this is more than a social programme. It’s a policy-aligned, evidence-backed approach to achieving SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 8 (Decent Work & Economic Growth), with benefits that ripple through entire communities.
Measurable Achievements to Date
The numbers tell one story. The lived experience tells another.
From the project’s monitoring data:
- 2,038 women trained in business management, value addition, and climate-smart agriculture.
- 50+ enterprises transitioned from micro to formally registered businesses.
- Over KSh.15.3 million mobilized through savings, reinvestment, and group income-generating activities.
- Dairy collectives reduced milk spoilage by up to 30% through better storage.
- Beekeeping collectives reported a 20% rise in honey yields after adopting improved hives introduced through project training.
- Vegetable farming groups increased sales revenues by an average of KSh.6,000 per member per month through new market linkages with local hotels and institutions.
But behind these figures are networks of trust, innovation, and resilience. A collective that once struggled to sell small batches now confidently supplies large contracts. Members who once feared digital tools now run e-commerce accounts.
The reports note growing confidence among women to speak in public forums and negotiate with county officials , a change that goes far beyond the balance sheet.
The Barriers that Remain for WEE
No transformation is without its hurdles.
Financing Gaps Affecting WEE
Collateral demands from banks remain a stubborn barrier. While savings groups provide a lifeline, the scale of capital needed for expansion, buying machinery, accessing export certification, requires larger, more affordable financing streams.
For instance, the average cost of a pasteurizer for dairy collectives is KShs.350,000–500,000, way beyond most groups’ pooled savings.
Gender Norms
Even in high-performing collectives, some women face resistance from within their own households or communities. Leadership is often still seen as a male domain. Yet each visible success begins to shift perceptions, slowly normalizing women as decision-makers.
Climate & Infrastructure
With agriculture central to many collectives, unpredictable climate change poses a real threat. Some groups are already adapting, diversifying into poultry, beekeeping, and value-added products, but scaling these adaptations demands investment.
Post-harvest losses from inadequate storage still account for 10–20% of output in some groups, according to the reports. For partners: these are not intractable problems. They are openings, clear points where targeted support can dramatically accelerate the gains already in motion.
Scaling and Sustaining the Model
The WEE Collectives model also sits within a wider movement of research and advocacy. CRAWN Trust has worked alongside the African Women Studies Center – Women’s Economic Empowerment Hub (WEE Hub) at the University of Nairobi, the Center for Rights Education and Awareness (CREAW), and the Institute for Social Accountability (TISA), among others.
Through platforms such as the Women’s Economic Forum, these partnerships have brought together evidence from four and a half years of research, on-the-ground implementation, and policy engagement. This has made it possible to showcase what works, identify bottlenecks, and push for reforms that make women’s economic participation not just possible, but sustainable.
The next stage for WEE Collectives is not about starting from scratch. It’s about strengthening and expanding what already works.
Scaling priorities identified in the reports include:
- Policy advocacy to improve women’s access to finance, markets, and land rights.
- Capacity deepening to equip leaders with advanced governance, financial, and marketing skills.
- Private sector linkages that bring women’s products into high-value supply chains, from national retailers to export markets.
The vision is tangible because imagine every county in Kenya hosting dozens of thriving WEE Collectives, each generating income, creating jobs, and influencing policy. Based on current performance, the model could reach 100,000+ women entrepreneurs if replicated in just 50 collectives per county, each averaging 40 active members.
The ripple effects, healthier households, stronger markets, more inclusive governance, would be felt nationwide.
Why Should Donors and Partners Invest?
For donors and strategic partners, WEE Collectives offer a unique blend of impact and return:
- Social impact, measurable poverty reduction, improved food security, and greater gender parity.
- Economic return, stronger supply chains, new market entrants, and increased tax bases.
- Policy alignment, contribution to national priorities and global development goals.
This is not a pilot project needing proof. It’s a tested model with documented outcomes, a clear scaling pathway, and a strong implementing partner in CRAWN Trust. Investing here means backing a system that is already delivering and ready to multiply its impact.
Donor ROI Snapshot: Why WEE Collectives Deliver
Investment in WEE Collectives through CRAWN Trust creates measurable, scalable impact.
- Reach: 2,038 women trained; 50+ enterprises formalized
- Financial Growth: KShs.15M+ mobilized in savings & reinvestment
- Economic Return: 40–100% income growth in some collectives
- Scalability: Potential to impact 100,000+ women across all 47 counties
- Policy Alignment: Direct contribution to SDGs 1, 5, 8, 10 & Kenya’s BETA agenda
Your partnership turns proven results into nationwide transformation
How Can Partners Engage?
Engagement can take many forms:
Investment Opportunities
- Expand financial products tailored to women-led enterprises.
- Fund infrastructure like storage, processing, and transport.
- Support branding and market development for women’s products.
Technical Partnerships
- Offer mentorship and advanced training in governance, finance, and digital commerce.
- Open doors to regional and international market networks.
Advocacy & Policy
- Work with CRAWN Trust to shape legislation that removes barriers to women’s economic participation.
Every partnership accelerates the pace of change, turning steady progress into transformational leaps.
Partner With CRAWNTrust to for Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE)
The WEE Collectives model is proven, scalable, and aligned with Kenya’s economic future. The next step is bold: expanding reach from thousands of women to tens of thousands, across all counties.
This vision is within reach , but only if those with resources, influence, and networks step forward.
Contact crawntrust.org to get the full reports, see the detailed impact, and discover how your partnership could multiply these results. Because when women have the tools and opportunities to lead economically, everyone benefits from households, communities, and the nation as a whole.