{
  "id": 19299168,
  "title": "Equity Group raises spending on women-owned businesses by 303pc",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/10/equity-group-raises-spending-on-women-owned-businesses-by-303pc",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-10T06:05:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Capital Business",
    "slug": "capital-business",
    "url": "https://capitalfm.africa/equity-group-raises-spending-on-women-owned-businesses-by-303pc/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Equity Group, a financial services group based in Kenya, has significantly increased its spending on women-owned businesses, raising procurement spending by an impressive 303 per cent to Sh3.72 billion in 2025. This marked a substantial rise from Sh923.53 million spent in 2024. The financial services group's total procurement spending rose to KSh52.79 billion in 2025, with the majority – 90 per cent – directed towards local suppliers.\n\nEquity's efforts to support economic opportunities for women, young entrepreneurs, and persons with disabilities were evident in their increased spending on youth-owned businesses as well. Procurement spending on these businesses jumped by 75 per cent to Sh491.05 million, up from Sh280.67 million in the previous year. The Group emphasized that local procurement remained a cornerstone of their strategy to broaden access to business opportunities.\n\nIn 2025, 90 per cent of Equity's procurement spend went to local suppliers, compared to 81 per cent in 2024. As part of its responsible sourcing requirements, the lender hired 67 persons with disabilities in 2025, a 24 per cent increase from the 54 hires in 2024. Additionally, the company onboarded 306 new suppliers throughout the year, all of which underwent environmental and social screening. Equity Group pledged to continue strengthening supplier assessments and integrating environmental, social, and governance considerations into their procurement decisions.",
  "summary": "NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 10 – Equity Group increased procurement spending on women-owned businesses by 303 per cent to Sh3.72 billion in 2025, as the financial services group stepped up efforts…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}