Empowering 200+ Widows in Rural Kenya Through a Functional Office – NbWG Grant Application
Introduction
Hello EA Forum Community,
My name is Michael Agundah, Gerry, and I support Nambulabuchiro Women Group (NbWG) team as the Communication and Fundraising. NbWG is a grassroots organization led by widows and based in Samia Sub-County, Busia County, Kenya.
We are reaching out to the EA community to share our grant request of $ 4,917 towards office establishment for NbWG and invite feedback, funding referrals, or partnerships.
About NbWG
NambulaBuchiro (in Samia language – meaning ‘Without findings’) Women Group is a widows self-help group that work together for purposes of transforming widows lives economically, socially and mentally by enabling them have access to resource management. NbWG is a widows-led and widows-serving community-based organization with over 50 active members, we support widows through:
Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA)
Economic empowerment trainings
Small scale agriculture and entrepreneurship
Land rights advocacy
Mental health and psychosocial support
We currently operate without a central office, running programs from borrowed or outdoor spaces. This greatly limits our ability to coordinate, scale, and provide structured support to the over 200 vulnerable widows we aim to serve annually.
Theory of Change (Summary)
‘’ If poor, marginalized and vulnerable women are provided customized business services (skills, entrepreneurship training, financial and market linkages), then their income significantly increases, and so does their participation in household and public decision-making.
Our one-page visual Theory of Change: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1d6gHRaeVxUn3kZKqUoPu4mE1-hcyBdlw/view?usp=sharing
Grant Proposal: Establishing a Functional Office
We’ve prepared a proposal seeking $ 4,917 (USD) to establish NbWG first ever coordination office. This space will serve as a hub for:
Effectively managing group(s) training
Storing essential records and documents
Supporting coordination, data tracking and outreach
Timely reaching out communicating with stakeholders
Full Grant Proposal (PDF): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I7IMEMowkak0fasHXnLOEuBHIN0QnydL/view?usp=sharing
Our model aligns with Effective Altruism values:
Cost-effectiveness (~$24.59/widow served)
Targeting a neglected population
Scalable and replicable
Based on evidence-backed rural savings/training interventions
How You Can Help
We’d deeply appreciate:
Constructive feedback on the proposal
Connections to EA-aligned funders or local organizations
Insights into similar projects we could learn from
Support to help fund the $ 4,917 required
Your support will make a significant difference in empowering these widows as they continue their journey towards economic independence and social dignity. Technical advice, connectivity and/ Networking highly welcome.
Fundraising LINK:
https://gogetfunding.com/nambulabuchiro-women-group-functional-office-space/
We sincerely appreciate your consideration and support.
In solidarity,
Michael Agundah, Gerry
On behalf of Nambulabuchiro Women Group (NbWG)
📧 gerrymichaelagundah@gmail.com
📞 +254 722 515573
#WidowsEmpowerment #EconomicJustice #RuralDevelopment #SDGs #EACommunity #EffectiveAltruism #GlobalSouthImpact #GrassrootsLeadership #WidowsProtection
Hey Gerry! It sounds like your organisation is working on a really important demographic in potentially a very cost-effective way! I think your application would be more compelling to potential funders if it included answers to the following:
What other funding is being used for this project? Presumably you also have staff to pay etc
This would help donors understand the full cost of supporting a widow right now. If this isn’t apparent, most donors will think it’s much much higher because if something is missing they tend to assume the worst.
What are your ambitions for the future?
Most of the impact of a grant like this is often in supporting an organisation that will grow into something more impactful over time. EA donors especially care about this, and want to know your longer term plans if possible.
How would your outputs differ without an office?
It’s not clear what the $5k itself would buy in terms of additional widows being supported. This, “the counterfactual difference in utility” is the primary thing EA donors think about when deciding to donate.
If you take away one thing let it be this: anything left unclear or unspecified will be interpreted more negatively than if it had been clearly stated. For this reason, you might also want to include an organisational budget and more details on exactly what you’re teaching / how you’re supporting people with their mental health.
That being said, there are some great things about this application:
The length is right for the size of the grant
its written in plain English, which is much more persuasive than any alternative.
It’s great that it’s being led by the demographic it intends to serve!
It does seem like the costs are low and the potential impact is high, which is exactly what EA funders are looking for.
I’d be happy to spend 30 mins helping you work on your application if you’d like (for free). I’ve been successful in raising money for mental health work in LMICs over the past few years. If that’d be helpful, drop me a message or just leave a comment and I’ll reach out by email :)
Hey John,
I highly welcome your technical support. MA Gerry
🌟 A Beautiful Beginning! 🌟
We are deeply grateful to receive our first donation of $25 toward the Nambulabuchiro Women Group (NbWG) office campaign from Deena Englander @WorkStream NonProfit
This first step is more than a gift — it’s a vote of confidence in widows rising from hardship to hope.
With your support, we are now $25 closer to establishing a safe, functional office space that will empower over 200 widows annually through training, peer support, and income-generating opportunities.
As the very first donor, your contribution has lit the path — and we believe many more will follow your lead 🙏🏿
💜 From all of us at NbWG — thank you for walking with widows.
What are your plans for ongoing funding? Your ask includes rent/utilities for year 1, but that sounds like a recurring expense in addition to your organization’s other ongoing expenses. Much of the potential value here accrues in year 2 and beyond, and unlocking that is contingent on having adequate operational funding in future years.
Hi Jason,
Thanks so much you for your question. We highly appreciate your concern on Sustainability Plan of the ongoing fundraising of NbWG Functional Office and that clearly indicate your empathetic concern for these widows and visionary thoughts on how NbWG leadership will ensure the office thrives for years, effectively supporting them.
The teams focus on future sustainable monthly rent, utilities, maintenance and essential operations of the office rests on accountability of NbWG team leaders.
Team leaders key objective being to ensure long-term sustainability of future office rent, utilities and maintenance costs by diversifying funding sources and building local ownership that will enable consistent service delivery to over 200 widows annually. For ensuring long-term sustainability of the office especially covering recurring expenses like rent, utilities and maintenance for unforeseeable operation, NbWG’s key plans and strategies include;
- Effectively manage community table banking fund for creating an internal sustainability fund through forty-night contributions by groups e.g. KES 200 – KES 500 and using pooled fund as a back-up for rent, utility and maintenance cost in future.
- Capitalization on Income Generating Activities (IGAs) whereby with a team of over 50 widows NbWG will be in a position to;
Operate groups; poultry rearing, small-scale horticulture, animal husbandry and short term agricultural produce both for consumption and selling as social enterprises.
Dedicate 5–10% of profits monthly to cover future rent and office maintenance.
Use the office as a base for coordinating and marketing group members products where small fee is saved towards rental and maintenance
3 - Utilize monthly giving program where;
NbWG will launch a recurring group program targeting members willing to commit KES 50 – KES 200 per month towards emergency account support.
In future, NbWG will consider creating a PayPal subscription button or setting up Donorbox recurring donations including mobile money integrations esp with M-Changa which is available in Kenya.
4 - Effectively manage groups quarterly giving campaigns by
Hosting social media and WhatsApp campaigns every 3 months e.g. hosting a two month rent drive.
Engage NbWG community, family friends and diaspora supporters to contribute small amounts collectively.
5 - Ensure office budget integration in all NbWG project including anticipated future grants by;
Spreading costs across various funded programs including agriculture, financial inclusion, digital literacy, health and advocacy programs.
Including a proportionate allocation for office rent, utilities and maintenance in all future anticipated grant applications.
Regularly ensuring contribution towards office rent account from any in-kind contribution received by NbWG if any.
NbWG is indeed committed to maintaining a secure, functional and dignified space for widows. Through a mix of local contribution, income generation, partnerships and digital giving, we aim to ensure the office is not only sustained but also becomes a hub of transformation for widows in Samia Sub-County, Busia County and beyond.
Thanks. May I ask what the current status of your monthly, quarterly, and similar giving programs are?
(As an aside, you’ll often get questions like this by potential EA/EA-adjacent donors because we’re looking at local fundraising ability as a proxy for the local community’s assessment of your organization, its programs, and its proposals. For various reasons, we have a poor ability to assess certain things that are important, particularly relating to ability to execute, whether the proposal is a good fit for a local community thousands of miles away from us, etc. So looking for evidence of how people who have the cultural and geographical background to assess is fairly common practice. At least for me, the gross amount raised per se is less important than the breadth of community support. Although the answer is also relevant to assessing how viable the sustainability model is.)
Hi Jason,
Thank you so much for your interest on both aspects of our recurring giving programs and the viability of NbWG sustainability model for the functional office.
At the moment, we are in the early stages of building structured monthly and quarterly giving programs. Among major requirement(s) of having a functional office, managed by a well structured systems thus a call on fundraising request to support in establishment of a functional office. While we currently accept one-time donations via PayPal and fundraising platforms ‘GoGetFunding’, we are actively working on setting up:
A simple program dubbed “Friends of NbWG”, where recurring donors will receive regular updates and small tokens of appreciation esp. widows handmade crafts.
A monthly giving option through PayPal and/ Donorbox for supporters who wish to give automatically and/ recurring support. (Be engaging EA Forum team to advice on proven ways of managing an effective recurring giving in women led organization)
A quarterly donor engagement cycle to maintain communication, share impact stories and recognize supporters.
On the other note of sustainability model, we believe our model is realistic, community-rooted and designed for gradual strengthening. As mentioned in our sustainability plan with key focus;
1. Community Ownership: Where group members are encouraged to contribute towards small savings and participating in self-help initiatives. This is to create a strong local foundation that will also act as backup fund.
2. Diversified Income Streams: Where we’re targeting not to rely on a single source. Our plan including monthly giving, income-generating activities (IGAs), grant budget integration and local table banking contributions to distribute responsibility and reduce risk.
Among other strategies as mentioned.
In summary, our system(s) are in early stages but intentionally being built for resilience. With initial support and transparency, we believe we can grow into a fully self-sustaining widow-led center of transformation and empowerment.
Your interest is incredibly encouraging and I highly welcome your feedback and/ participation of establishing a strong system(s). We’d be honored to include you as a founding supporter of this long-term sustainability effort.
We’re open to suggestions and warmly welcome collaborators who wish to walk with us through this journey. Do believe too, in the proverb… ‘If you want to go far, go together….’
A Journey Begins — Thank You to Our First Donor!
Dear Team,
We are excited to share a special milestone with you — we have received our first donation toward building a functional office space for widows in Samia Sub County, Busia County!
This initial gift is such a powerful sign of belief in the dignity, resilience and leadership trust of the group leadership. It is the first brick in a foundation of hope, healing and growth.
With your continued encouragement and solidarity, we are on the path to creating a safe, permanent space where widows can:
Rebuild self-worth through peer support
Access agricultural and financial trainings
Attain effectual skills in economic development
Coordinate micro-grants and table banking programs
Access training to enhance knowledge on legal awareness
Launch income-generating projects to fighting against poverty
Access technical skills through training for mitigating climate change
We invite you to walk with us in this journey. The future is being written one act of kindness at a time — and it started today.
Fundraising Link:
https://gogetfunding.com/nambulabuchiro-women-group-functional-office-space/
💜 Let’s keep building dignity together.