For the 57% of Africans without a bank account, getting a business loan is a community affair. Armed with a rattling box of their own cash, local groups of savers – usually women – will consider the application and negotiate interest rates together.
These village schemes – known as savings groups – are popping up all over Africa. In Uganda, a country of 50 million people, there are already more than million groups and counting. These microfinance movements are a lifesaver, especially for farmers who urgently need funding to adapt to the climate crisis.
