AMREF and Barclays: Bringing poverty to account
Barclays is an international financial services organisation, which has an annual income in excess of £20 billion and more than 27 million customers around the world. As part of its new 'Banking on Brighter Futures' programme, Barclays has pledged £150 million to different projects for the next five years, coupled with 150,000 hours of employees’ volunteering time.
Background to the partnership
AMREF's partnership with Barclays began in 2007, having successfully secured the support of the Guardian to implement the ground-breaking Katine project. Barclays were not only focused on grant giving but also in providing technical support through their financial inclusion model. This helps provide access to financial services for rural communities and to build the capacity of these communities to manage their small businesses and their money.
With the help of Barclays' expertise AMREF have been able to provide real support in helping people establish village savings and loans associations and Farmers’ groups and other cooperatives. These introduce village-level microfinance which means individuals can borrow small amounts of money to purchase a sewing machine and start up business as a tailor, or buy new stock for their store. This in turn helps ensure their long term financial security, enabling people to find their own way out of poverty and ultimately to better health.
"Barclays is delighted to be working in true partnership with AMREF. Our partnership draws on the strengths and expertise of both organisations, enabling us together to reach some of the poorest people in Africa. Barclays works with AMREF because AMREF is well placed to understand Africa and to develop solutions to poverty that are real and lasting. Our partnership motivates and inspires our colleagues, making them proud to work for Barclays.” Susie Hares - Global Community Partnerships Manager
PROJECT IN FOCUS: The Katine Project, Soroti District, Uganda
In-keeping with our principle of achieving sustainable change through community empowerment AMREF joined forces with the Guardian and Barclays in 2007 to undertake a three year project in Katine, a sub-county in the Soroti district of Uganda.
Soroti has always been a deprived district, but the effects of a 20-year civil war in the nearby northern region displaced the whole sub-county. Entire villages were razed to the ground and people, like their cattle, were indiscriminately killed by the insurgents. The people of Katine had lost everything, including hope for a better future.
Barclays pledge of £1.5m to the Katine project, which included an upfront donation of £500,000 to get the programme underway and a further £1m in match-funding for Guardian and Observer reader's donations over the three years, helped ensure that AMREF was able to improve the health, education, livelihoods and community empowerment, not only of the people of Katine, but also those in the wider sub-county.
AMREF, alongside its partners, have laid the foundations to improve the health, education and long-term success of the whole community, improving people’s ability to earn a decent living and giving them a voice in local decision-making, all of which make for healthier communities.
The project was so successful that in 2010 it won the prestigious Business in the Community Coffey International Award, supported by DFID Example of Excellence.