Finance and entrepreneurship

OU has brokered deals with hundreds of high-risk SMEs in diverse markets, helping them improve business plans/making them investment ready, mobilize finance, backstop their business expansion.

Examples of our expertise

Social and Impact Entrepreneurship (SIE) Project (2025 – ongoing)

Donor: Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC); Implementer: Draper Richards Kaplan (DRK) Foundation, in collaboration with the Amahoro Coalition and GrowthAfrica

OU provides technical backstopping advice to design and implement a robust monitoring framework that allows the project to capture the results of working with social enterprises and developing the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Ghana, Egypt, and Rwanda.

iGravity’s Impact-Linked Fund for Gender Inclusive Fintech (ILF for GIF) (2023)

OU conducted an independent verification of ILF for GIF’s Village Capital Accelerator Program’s Results

iFarmer (2021 – 2023)

OU supported setting up a system for impact monitoring, backstopped the team designing, implementing and analyzing complex research efforts; various donors and investors.

Mercy Corps Ventures (2023)

OU reviewed, suggested indicators for impact reporting by investees.

Catholic Relief Services (2022)

OU developed an operational manual for a systemic approach to entrepreneurship development.

OU Flagship initiative: OU was the system expert member of the Mastercard Foundation Finance Implementation Partner Organization (IPO) with Ecorys (2023 – 2025)

OU conducted strategic reviews of various financial instruments and investment vehicles (blended finance and guarantees for banks, fund of funds structures for local capital providers, and venture capital) to assess their potential to strengthen local financial systems, financial inclusion and employment creation in seven African countries. Reviews were followed by sense-making workshops with stakeholders to strengthen their system perspective.