Learn more about our 2024 funding announcements that support new organizations providing income-generating opportunities for entrepreneurs around the world.
Check back throughout the year as we’ll continually update this page with new funding announcements!
Africa Works | Mozambique
BOMA | Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia & Kenya
Whole Planet approved a $57,375 grant to BOMA to support BOMA’s cross-country implementation research to generate lessons learned and best practices in implementing climate adapted Rural Entrepreneur Access Project in Kenya and Ethiopia.This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $630,792 which supports BOMA’s entrepreneurship program in Ethiopia and Burkina Faso.
Whole Planet also administered a new project for Kasperick Foundation: a 3-year $900,000 grant for BOMA Kenya which will fund business start-up support for 1500+ participants of their graduation program. This grant contributes to BOMA’s global goal of reaching 3 million people by the end of 2027.
Whole Planet also approved a $600,000, 3-year grant to BOMA in Burkina Faso, Chad and Ethiopia to help fund business start-up packages for an estimated 4,691 entrepreneurs through BOMA’s graduation program.
To date, BOMA has received over $2.9 million through six projects to support programs in Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia and Kenya.
BRAC Myanmar | Myanmar
Whole Planet approved a 3-year $600,000 grant to BRAC Myanmar to reach 2,181 new borrowers through their Inclusive Finance business loan product which is designed to be accessible for persons with disabilities.
To date, this partner has received over $2.2 million through five projects.
Camino Verde | Peru
Whole Planet approved a 3-year, $150,000 grant to Camino Verde in Peru to provide agroforestry input packages to subsistence farmers living in the Amazonian River Basin. These agroforestry packages include fruit and nut tree seedlings for food security and Rosewood tree seedlings for income generation. The seedlings purchased will be sourced from a Seed Collection network of indigenous and forest-dwelling women.
CAURIE | Senegal
Engishon | Tanzania
Whole Planet approved a $4,500 grant to Engishon to help strengthen and grow their financial inclusion program for pastoralist communities in rural Tanzania. The funds will contribute to various key initiatives, including marketing and branding for staff and offices, piloting SMS services for client and loan repayment management; and logistics support for monitoring and evaluation activities.
This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $50,000 which supports Engishon’s business loans for savings groups in northern Tanzania.
Environomica | Colombia
Whole Planet approved a 3-year, $233,717 grant to Environomica to provide agroforestry input packages to Wiwa communities living in Colombia’s Sierra Nevada mountains. Environomica will support participants to plant and maintain coffee, cocoa, fruit, and forest trees and, eventually, to sell their products to local cooperatives.
FANSOTO | Senegal
*This is a Kasperick Foundation funded project administered by Whole Planet.
Whole Planet approved a new project for Kasperick Foundation: a 3-year, $350,000 grant to support FANSOTO, a social microfinance institution in Senegal that was started by Whole Planet’s network partner EdM (Entrepreneurs du Monde).
Farmerline Global | Cote d’Ivoire, Benin and Burkina Faso
Whole Planet approved a $600,000, 3-year no-interest loan to support Farmerline with their expansion from Ghana into Cote d’Ivoire, Benin and Burkina Faso. Whole Planet’s contribution would be leveraged to provide over $1.8 million of agriculture input disbursements for 1,324 farmers. With Whole Planet’s support, Farmerline can ramp up their most accessible and entry level loan product, include more women farmers and reach sustainability as a social enterprise.
FondoMás | Mexico
Whole Planet approved a $24,500 grant to FondoMás which will allow them to carry out a banking campaign for all 100 of their technicians, to help them get a bank account linked to a checkbook and a debit card, to facilitate transfers and payments with their village banks, made up of coffee farmers.
This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $300,000 through two projects to support group loans to coffee farmers in Chiapas, Mexico.
FOOP | Sierra Leone
Whole Planet approved a $57,735 grant to FOOP to significantly enhance FOOP’s work and directly benefit farmers by expanding and refining its initiatives, and by strengthening its monitoring and evaluation systems. This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $300,000 which supports agriculture inputs and mechanization services distributed on credit to smallholder farmers through FOOP’s Service-Delivery Unit (SDU). Specifically, the funds will establish a “Greenhouse Female Training Centre” to support access to quality seed varieties and training sessions for women farmers. Funds will also support growing the personnel and systems needed to offer stronger impact measurement.
Fundación Paraguaya | Paraguay
Whole Foods Market Foundation has forgiven $200,000 of an outstanding loan of $300,000, with Fundacion Paraguaya, to fund this a new grant project. The $200,000 will support Fundación Paraguaya to donate Micro Franchise Kits to new Women’s Committee members with no business experience and living in a highly vulnerable state. By joining the Committee, they would gain business experience, training, begin to save money and generate income, and then eventually begin taking loans alongside their fellow members.
To date, this partner has received over $2.6 million through six projects.
FUNDER | Honduras
*This is a Kasperick Foundation funded project administered by Whole Planet.
Whole Planet approved a new project for Kasperick Foundation: a $400,000, 2-year grant for FUNDER, a nonprofit with decades of experience promoting rural business development in Honduras. This project would support FUNDER’s new Food Security Loan: which provides loan capital to Village Banks that produce beans, corn, and coffee. FUNDER encourages the farmers to invest in “green” and efficient technology that boosts productivity, i.e., solar units for drying coffee and machines for planting seeds. This project would also support FUNDER’s Commercial Triangulation Loan: which provides working debt capital to small businesses and cooperatives that have existing market linkages for coffee, beans, cacao, corn, and dairy products.
Whole Planet also approved a $50,000 grant to help strengthen the savings and food security of 540 families, organized in 20 rural Village and Savings Banks, in 20 communities in Honduras, where climatic conditions such as droughts frequently affect the production and availability of food such as beans – a daily staple in Honduras.
To date, this partner has received $900,000 through four projects.
Futuro mcb | Mozambique
Whole Planet approved a $214,839, three-year grant to Futuro mcb in Mozambique to support their goal of offering group loan and group savings to new customers in three branches, including two new branches. Funding from this grant will reach more than 2,700 new borrowers and 6000 new savers.
GGEM Farming | Malawi
Whole Planet approved a $57,735 grant to help fund GGEM‘s pilot initiative to research, multiply, distribute, and seed bank alternative grains like sorghum, known for their nutritional value and drought resistance.
This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $600,000 which supports GGEM Farming’s input loans for smallholder rice and legume farmers.
To date, this partner has received over $1 million through six projects.
Grassland Association for Agricultural Development | Cameroon
Whole Planet approved a 3-year $600,000 grant to support Grassland Association for Agricultural Development (GAAD). GAAD provides agriculture inputs on credit, climate smart extension training and a market for smallholder farmers in Cameroon. Whole Planet’s contribution would finance the cultivation of maize, millet and soybean on 3,655 hectares of land by 2,707 smallholders.
This project complements the existing funds of $300k which have been disbursed under the prior project.
Heifer | Guatamela
Whole Planet approved a $350,0000, 3-year grant to Heifer Guatemala, to support their Green Business Belt project which will distribute agroforestry packages to 1,000 farmers producing cardamom and other culinary spices. Heifer’s approach strengthens the entire spices value chain, including not just the farmer, but the local cooperatives, national and international buyers and exporters.
Jiro-Ve | Madagascar
Whole Planet approved a $12,500 grant to Jiro-Ve, whose mission is to use a franchise model to bring affordable, clean, and quality lighting to areas without reliable energy sources in Madagascar.
This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $300,000 which supports Jiro Ve’s solar product rental business serving off-grid and rural communities in Madagascar.
To date, this partner has received $410,000 through three projects.
Kula | Rwanda
Whole Planet approved a $300,000, 3-year grant to Kula Project. Kula Project runs a 12-month fellowship graduation model designed to eradicate poverty through the development of entrepreneurs in Rwanda’s coffee communities. The grant will support their sustainable agriculture input packages (such as coffee seedlings and farming tools) and business capital through Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) going to 2,428 Fellows.
Local Act | Thailand
Whole Planet approved a $38,611 grant to support Local Act in Thailand. Local Act seeks to empower their farmers to make their own business investment decisions with capital from revolving funds managed directly by the farmer groups. Since many of the farmers are still managing a high debt burden, Local Act proposes seeding these revolving funds with sufficient capital for investments, after which farmers will continue to manage, save, and contribute towards the funds independently.
Munafa | Sierra Leone
Whole Planet approved a $350,000, 3-year grant to support Munafa, a microfinance insitution in Sierra Leone started by Whole Planet network partner, Entrepreneurs du Monde. Whole Planet’s contribution will provide over 5,966 microloans for small enterprise and agriculture production in 2 branches (Moyamba and an additional branch to be opened in a rural region of Sierra Leone).
myAgro | Cote d’Ivoire
Whole Planet approved a $57,735 grant to myAgro Cote d’Ivoire to help scale their agriculture finance solution to Côte d’Ivoire with an overall goal of serving 500 farmers in 2024.
This grant complements a total of $1.25 million which has been disbursed by both Whole Planet & strategic partner, Kasperick Foundation, to support women smallholders in Senegal and Mali. Whole Planet is thrilled to accompany myAgro in their West Africa expansion with funds for the Cote d’Ivoire pilot.
myAgro | Senegal, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire
Whole Planet approved a $750,000 subordinated loan to myAgro to purchase agricultural inputs for the farmers it serves across Senegal, southern Mali, and its newly launched pilot in a limited number of peri-urban and rural villages in Cote d’Ivoire. myAgro’s digital layaway platform enables farmers to save little-by-little for climate-smart packages of agricultural inputs and training so they can improve their food security and income.
To date, this partner has received over $1.2 million through three projects.
Pollinate Group | Nepal & India
Whole Planet approved $195,183, 3-year grant to support Pollinate Group’s implementing partners in Nepal and India (Kalpavriksha & Pollinate India). The contribution will support the purchase of stock (solar lamps, cooking appliances, sanitary items) for the microbusinesses of over 1,100 entrepreneurs in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya Chitwan, Kailali and Bardiya..
Rashak | Nigeria
Whole Planet approved a $300,000 zero-interest local currency loan to Rashak Farms & Agro-Allied Limited, a social enterprise focused on empowering smallholder farmers in Nigeria by providing them with quality inputs, modern farming techniques, and market access. WP funds will support maize and wheat input packages, growing the input product from 1,800 to 2,543 farmers.
Sampurna Financial Services | India
Whole Planet approved a $300,000, 8-year subordinated PRI loan to Sampurna Financial Services (SFS) in India. Whole Planet’s contribution will provide over 11,000 microloans for small enterprise and agriculture production in 7 new branches.
These newly approved funds complement the total $650k which was disbursed under two previous projects.
SOS Amazonia | Brazil
Whole Planet approved a project with new partner SOS Amazonia (SOS), a Brazilian nonprofit whose signature program equips subsistence and smallholder farmers, living in deforested and degraded areas of the Amazon, to implement Agroforestry Systems. This 3-year $300,000 grant would allow SOS to pursue 3 interrelated activities: (1) purchasing seeds from Seed Collectors (2) providing Personal Protective Equipment to new Seed Collectors; and (3) Establishing Community Nurseries with subsistence farmers.
Whole Planet also approved a $40,000 grant to strengthen the trade network of women seed collectors through additional tools, training, transportation and building a cold seed storage bank.
To date, this partner has received $340,000 through two projects.
Smiling Through Light | Sierra Leone
Whole Planet approved a $10,000 grant to Smiling through Light. This will have a catalytic effect by enabling them to undertake several high-impact activities including investments in both digital and physical PayOps sales infrastructures, facilitating the launch of a new hub and helping to expand their footprint and sales channels.
This grant complements Whole Planet’s active project of $50,000 which supports the procurement of solar products that are distributed to customers using the PAYG (pay as you go) credit.
Swahili Honey | Southern Highlands Region of Tanzania
Whole Planet approved supporting Central Park Bees Limited (doing business under the brand name Swahili Honey) with a $300,000 no-interest loan to scale their beehive loans to an estimated 898 small-scale beekeepers in the Southern Highlands Region of Tanzania.
Trickle Up | India
Trófica | Colombia
Whole Planet approved a $50,000, one-year grant to Trófica, a Colombian social enterprise that trains, educates, and supports a network of almost 800 informal waste collectors. The grant will help provide advance payments and motorcycle loans to microentrepreneurs managing waste Collection Centers.
Upendo Honey | Kigoma, Tanzania
Whole Planet approved a $234,000 no-interest loan for Upendo Honey to scale their pre-harvest financing program to an estimated 5,800 small-scale beekeepers in Western Tanzania.
Village Enterprise | Uganda
