This week, exactly as planned, PlusPlus investees Sereni Fries and POD Chocolate have repaid the first half of their loan. The gift that keeps on giving is now ready to make an impact yet again. But what was the impact of these first loans?
What inspires people to invest in PlusPlus projects? We asked two lenders about their motivations for investing without financial return.
Last weekend, PlusPlus existed for six months. Time to get the numbers up. What have we achieved together? What's going well? Where do we still have a way to go? We like to be open about this.
Investing in entrepreneurs in developing countries as a Dutch entrepreneur? This can be very rewarding for both parties. “Sharing opportunities makes everything a lot more fun,” according to entrepreneur Ruud Bijl from Rotterdam.
He was one of the first entrepreneurs on PlusPlus: Humphrey Mburu, director and founder of Sereni Fries. In October, he received his first loan. What has the company done with that loan, up until now? Humphrey explains all in a brief interview.
For nearly fifteen million Kenyans it is not a given that they have enough to eat every day. Especially small-scale farmers in rural areas are continuously under threat of not having enough to eat. One of the reasons is the low yields from their lands. The farmers have no access to finance to invest in techniques and materials to improve their harvests. Apollo Agriculture changes this situation. Founder Benjamin Njenga tells us how.
Written by Peter Heijen on August 31, 2020 All major global problems can be traced back to these two: (income) inequality and climate change. That was the fascinating conclusion with which Wim Hart (the former CFO of ICCO) made me think, a few years ago. We were discussing the strategic cooperation between ICCO (now Cordaid) and Lendahand. Later, at a conference organized by Solidaridad, that conclusion was confirmed by one of the speakers.
One of the first partners to invest in PlusPlus was P4G. P4G is the Partnership for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030, a global network aiming to drive green economic growth through scaling up innovative public-private partnerships. As part of P4G’s 2019 global competition of Scale-Up Partnerships led by P4G, PlusPlus was 1 of 7 selected partners to receive a grant of 1 million USD, which was officially handed over on 23 September 2019, in New York.
"Social entrepreneurship has an infinite effect. If you use this in the right way, an incredible number of people can benefit from it without it costing money again and again."This message from Professor Yunus, founder of microcredit, was the main topic of the annual Goed Geld Gala of the Dutch Postcode Lottery. The message was emphasised with extra funds for various initiatives in impact investing. PlusPlus was one of the lucky ones.
Everywhere there are entrepreneurs, armed with business plans and looking for opportunities to grow their business. For them, that is the goal of SankAlp, a large conference in Kenya where impact investors and entrepreneurs meet. This year I had the honor, together with my PlusPlus colleagues, to participate in the conference and introduce PlusPlus.
