Best practices for integrating gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in SME programming in M-SAWA

The M-SAWA project is a seven-year programme focused on equitable economic and employment growth in the three priority sectors of agriculture, extractives and construction in targeted regions of Kenya. The programme ended in July 2022.

A key aim of the programme was to support women-led businesses and encourage SMEs to consider the gendered needs of small enterprises within their supply/distribution chains as well as improve their corporate gender practices. Key strategies used by the programme in support of this goal was the development of gendered action plans, grant support for gender-focused activities and the provision of additional gender equality mainstreaming grants to deepen gender work.

This paper focuses on lead firms engaged by the programme that received grants as well as additional gender support. It looks at the activities implemented to increase lead firm capacity to implement enhanced gender-equitable business growth with a special focus on creating a strategic human resource function that promotes gender diversity.