Kasha
Region and country of operations: East Africa, Rwanda and Kenya
Jurisdiction of registration:
Business sector: Health Care
Funding channelled through another company,
name and jurisdiction: Kasha Inc, USA
Date of agreement (month/year): 10/2020
Finnfund’s financing: USD 1,000,000
Share of Finnfund’s financing: 29%
Instrument: Equity
Size of project/financing: USD 3,400,000
Environmental and social category: B
Project description
Kasha is an e-commerce platform improving women’s access to health, hygiene, and self-care products in East Africa. The company sells a range of menstrual care products, contraceptives, pharmaceuticals, and beauty products via its own platform. Kasha aims to act as a trusted source of information around women’s products and operates in close cooperation with selected health partners.
Kasha’s products and services are accessible through the web platform, as well as with a basic phone, and via an agent network to serve women in rural areas. Last-mile delivery to customers is handled confidentially.
Kasha was first founded in 2016 in Rwanda and has since expanded to Kenya. The company has delivered over 830,000 products to over 100,000 consumers, with over 80,000 of which are direct customers and 75% of which are low-income. With Finnfund’s investment Kasha looks to grow its presence in current markets as well as expand and pilot its concept in three new countries in Africa.
Main development impact
Kasha’s business case builds around serving the demand raising from underserved women clientele. Kasha increases the access to (high stigma) health products and health information through e-commerce platform for low-income women (75% BoP), especially in the rural neighbourhoods. Kasha is also employing low-income women in the rural communities as Kasha agents.
Investment promotes gender equality in terms of creating access to health-related products, creating employment and leaderships opportunities for women. Kasha qualifies as 2X Challenge gender investment through all the criteria:
- Founder: Two female founders
- Ownership: 100% female ownership currently
- Leadership: 63% women in senior management; 42% women in the board
- Employment: Kasha’s full-time staff: 64% of the work force are women and women have equal representation, also in terms of influence and decision-making roles. Quality indicator: flexible practice applied towards new mothers
- Products/services: Kasha provides women a confidential access to SRH-products. 82% of the Kasha clients are women.
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