If there is a secret that has shaped Dunia Jarso Abdi’s career through the six years she has been at the helm of Taqwa Sacco, it’s that when you want to make real impact all you need is the support of women and youth. They always know where they want to be and what to do.
It’s a secret Dunia, 30, has leveraged since becoming CEO of Taqwa Sacco — Kenya’s first Shariah-compliant financial institution — at just 24.
By reaching out to women and the youth with financial products many lenders had ignored, she grew the sacco’s membership sixfold to more than 13,000 in just three years.
She has created pathways for the youth and women to thrive in a financial system that rejects them unheard.
"My dream is to break the cycle of poverty and inequality, and I believe this can only be achieved by giving women and youth access to finance and education."
“The impact we’ve had is mostly concentrated on women empowerment and youth. We’ve supported thousands of women-led enterprises to grow by offering them access to finances and business support. We believe that empowering women is fastest way to break the cycle of poverty and inequality,” she says.
Dunia goes for people at the bottom of the pyramid, reaches for the woman with a dream to rear goats or farm vegetables, the youth with that viable business idea that could thrive just with a little support. She walks with them through the idea to create sustainable enterprises that come with jobs and dignity.
Her dream is to break the cycle of poverty and inequality, and this, she believes, can only be achieved by enabling access to finance and education for women and youth.
This belief has driven her to not only deliver financial services to women in her community, but also promote girls’ education in marginalised areas through scholarships.
Dunia has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Statistics from the University of Nairobi (UoN), a Master’s in Procurement & Logistics from the same institution and is pursuing a PhD in Economics at UoN.
-Peter Mburu