By Sharon Kiburi
The Blue Economy has been the code word in the Kenyan streets. The just ended Blue Economy conference that brought together different people from different walks of life, all joining hands in pushing the blue economy agenda forward, saw issues related to water take a center stage.
At the conference, attended by delegates from over 180 countries made their commitments towards promoting the sustainable blue economy.
Wanjiku Wambugu who was strategically stationed at one of the side events pulled crowds who were keen on understanding her work.
She has positioned herself well in financing potential clients in the blue economy.
Wanjiku, an accountant by profession and a mother of three and CEO of Nyali Capital, explained in detail on how they are promoting entrepreneurs through her company. She has been operating the company for the last six years.
”Entrepreneurship is a gift that has brought me this far in my career. During my employment days, I used to have a side business (hustle) of selling second hands. I used to get them in bulk of clothes from Uganda and made me become very fashion cautious” Wanjiku narrates.
Prior to beginning a microfinance business, she sold eggs, mineral water which opened up away of her exploring the coastal area she had moved to Mombasa after starting her family. Interacting with the residents of the coastal area gave her an opportunity to learn the culture and norms which made it easy for her to successfully conduct business in the area.
Nyali Capital begun in 2013 where they gave lent from 5,000 to 50,000 KSH which has eventually grown through creativity and partners.
Beyond lending cash, Wambugu is passionate about saving and encourages her clients to save in a Sacco for financial security ”Finding ways to make extra money works to an individual’s advantage as opposed to moaning about a situation having capital opens up economic possibilities.”She affirms
Wambugu believes that the growth and sustainability of an organization depend on great policies, strategies, and partners to ensure accountability. Nyali capital ensures that they partner with banks and organizations to verify LPOs of their clients. Through these kinds of partnerships with CRB aids in accessing information that is useful to accountability for the Nyali capital when dealing with troubling clients.
Inspired by the opportunity to grow and expand to many parts of the country Wambugu stresses, ”It takes persistence, openness to learning and adjusting to the changes in the market to achieve goals in this venture. ”
Being in the sustainable blue economy conference is a privilege not only to increase their visibility but gives them a chance to learn in diverse disciplines represented in the matters.
