Launching her own business: Poni Anet, mother, refugee and entrepreneur

A very resourceful woman

Poni Anet Wori is 40 years old and lives in the Kalobeyei refugee camp in Kenya. She is a widow with seven children, the eldest of whom is 19. They come from South Sudan, which they fled in 2016 after Poni Anet's husband was killed. They first went to Kakuma refugee camp, 3.5 km from where they now live. There, through the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the family obtained accommodation and food aid provided by the World Food Programme.

Poni Anet has difficulty walking and uses a cane to get around. But that doesn't stop this determined woman. Immediately after arriving in Kenya, she started thinking about how to provide for her family. In 2017, using the few savings she brought with her, Poni Anet opened a small hotel.

But as a single mother of seven children in a refugee camp, she faced unique challenges. Reconciling her family and professional responsibilities proved particularly difficult. These difficulties took their toll on her business activities, and in 2019, Poni Anet had to close her hotel.

Bouncing back and finding her vocation

In 2023, Poni Anet asked to take part in HI's “InBusiness” project in Kakuma, which was designed to increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Working in collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders from civil society, the business world and local and national authorities, the project provided people with disabilities with training, financial and administrative support to enable them to launch and develop their own businesses.

Poni Anet was one of those who received training and support to develop her business and financial management skills. She was also helped to formalise her plans to set up a shop in Kalobeyei. Through the project, she was able to open an account with Equity Bank of Kenya, which accepted identity documents provided by the UNHCR instead of the national identity card usually required, and waived the fee usually charged to open an account.

Thanks to this financial support and the many training courses she took, Poni Anet is now able to run her shop successfully. Her business is doing well and, with the income she makes, she is able to meet all her family's needs, including school fees and school uniforms for her children.

“Today, I have more friends and they often invite me to their homes. Some of them even encourage me to spend more time with them by letting my children take care of the shop from time to time. To anyone in the same situation as me, I'd advise you not to wait to get started: start small, by selling a few sweets in schools, for example. And to HI, I'd urge you not to stop there, but to continue supporting all the people who need it.”