The BOMA Project

The BOMA Project is a United States nonprofit organization and Kenyan nongovernmental organization focused on reducing extreme poverty among women and vulnerable households in the arid and semi-arid lands of Northern Kenya. Its work combines livelihood development, financial inclusion, mentoring, savings, and training in an effort to help women establish sustainable income sources and strengthen the resilience of their families and communities. The organization was founded in 2005 by Kathleen Colson after she observed how poverty, environmental stress, and climate change were affecting pastoral communities in Northern Kenya. Colson worked with Ahmed “Kura” Omar to travel through the region and develop an approach suited to remote communities whose livelihoods depended heavily on livestock and were therefore vulnerable to drought, animal losses, food insecurity, and limited access to markets and financial services. The organization later developed the Rural Entrepreneur Access Project, commonly known as REAP, as its principal poverty-graduation program. REAP is designed as a two-year intervention for women living in some of Kenya’s poorest and most climate-exposed areas. The program begins by identifying women experiencing the greatest economic hardship in consultation with local communities. Participants then form three-woman business groups, receive seed capital, and work with BOMA mentors to establish small enterprises. Training covers financial management, basic business skills, family planning, human rights, and household decision-making. Business groups also join larger savings associations, which are intended to provide access to credit and create a continuing community-based financial structure after the initial program period. A further component is digital and formal financial inclusion. BOMA has helped participants open bank accounts and provided mobile phones that enable them to use M-PESA, Kenya’s mobile-money platform. These tools are intended to make saving, receiving money, managing business income, and accessing financial services more practical for women in remote areas. BOMA has concentrated its Kenyan operations in Marsabit and Samburu counties. The area has experienced recurrent drought and high poverty, while many households remain dependent on livestock and informal economic activity. The organization’s model therefore treats poverty reduction as connected to climate resilience, women’s economic agency, household welfare, and community-level savings. Its stated mission is to empower women in Africa’s drylands to create sustainable livelihoods, build resilient families, move out of extreme poverty, and stimulate change in rural communities. The organization reports that, since 2009, its programs have reached more than 203,000 participants and supported households containing more than one million people. It has also reported improvements in participants’ ability to pay for food, school fees, and medical care. Results cited in reference material include a 147 percent increase in monthly income, a 1,400 percent increase in savings, and a 63 percent decline in the number of children going to bed hungry in a 2016 survey. BOMA has further reported that 92 percent of women graduated from extreme poverty and that 97 percent of businesses remained in operation one year after launch. These figures are organizational impact claims and should be interpreted in light of their stated survey and evaluation methodologies. BOMA is funded by individual donors, foundations, and government agencies. Named supporters and funding partners have included the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Boeing, IKEA Foundation, Cartier Philanthropy, the Mastercard Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development, the United Kingdom Department for International Development, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, Aid for Africa, and several private foundations. In 2013, the organization received a United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activity Award. It also passed an ImpactMatters impact audit in 2015 and has held a Platinum rating on GuideStar according to the cited reference material. BOMA has stated an ambition to reach three million women and children by 2027.

The BOMA Project was established in 2005 by Kathleen Colson after she saw how poverty and climate-related pressures were affecting communities in Northern Kenya’s drylands. Working with Ahmed “Kura” Omar, Colson traveled through the region to understand the conditions facing pastoral and rural households and to develop a locally appropriate economic-development model. The organization’s central premise was that women in remote communities could improve household welfare and resilience if they received practical business support, seed capital, training, mentoring, and access to savings and financial services. This work developed into the Rural Entrepreneur Access Project, or REAP, a two-year poverty-graduation program. The model focuses on women living in the arid and semi-arid counties of Northern Kenya, particularly Marsabit and Samburu. These regions have experienced recurrent drought since the early 1990s, and many households have traditionally relied on livestock. Drought, livestock losses, limited infrastructure, and weak access to markets and formal financial institutions have contributed to high levels of poverty and food insecurity. REAP uses community-based targeting to identify women facing the greatest hardship. Participants form groups of three and receive mentoring while establishing small businesses. Each woman receives seed capital for enterprise development, alongside training in financial management, life skills, family planning, human rights, and household decision-making. Business groups are linked into savings associations, enabling participants to save collectively and potentially access credit. BOMA has also supported the opening of bank accounts and the distribution of mobile phones so participants can use M-PESA and participate more fully in Kenya’s digital financial system. The program is intended to produce more than short-term income. By combining enterprise creation with savings, mentoring, and household-level training, BOMA seeks to help women graduate from extreme poverty and withstand economic, social, and climate shocks. Its broader theory of change connects women’s income and decision-making power with improved food security, children’s education, healthcare access, and community resilience. The organization received international recognition in 2013 through the UNFCCC Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activity Award. In 2015, it reportedly passed an ImpactMatters impact audit. Reference material also identifies a Platinum rating on GuideStar. BOMA’s funding base has included individual donors, philanthropic foundations, development institutions, and government agencies, with named supporters including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Boeing, IKEA Foundation, Cartier Philanthropy, the Mastercard Foundation, USAID, and the UK Department for International Development. BOMA has reported substantial program reach since 2009, including more than 203,000 participants and over one million household members. Its cited impact figures include higher income and savings, reduced child hunger, high rates of graduation from extreme poverty, and strong first-year business survival. The organization has stated a goal of reaching three million women and children by 2027. Detailed current information about its leadership, headquarters, legal structure, financial scale, and progress toward that target is not established in the supplied reference material.

• 2015

  ImpactMatters audit

  [1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  The organization is reported to have passed an ImpactMatters impact audit.

• 2013

  UNFCCC Lighthouse Activity Award

  [1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  BOMA receives a Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activity Award from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

• 2009

  Reported program impact period begins

  [1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  BOMA uses 2009 as the starting point for its reported cumulative reach and participant-impact figures.

• 2005

  The organization is founded

  [1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  Kathleen Colson establishes The BOMA Project after studying poverty and climate-related vulnerability in Northern Kenya, working with Ahmed “Kura” Omar to develop its approach.

• Stated reach ambition

  [1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  BOMA states an ambition to reach three million women and children by 2027.

A women-centered nonprofit poverty-graduation and climate-resilience organization serving remote, arid communities in Northern Kenya.

• Poverty-graduation program

  Rural Entrepreneur Access Project (REAP)

  REAP is BOMA’s flagship two-year program for women in Northern Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands. It identifies women experiencing extreme poverty, organizes them into three-person business groups, provides seed capital, and offers sustained mentoring. Participants receive training in financial management, life skills, family planning, human rights, and household decision-making. The program also connects groups to savings associations, bank accounts, and mobile-money tools such as M-PESA. Its objective is to help women build durable livelihoods while improving food security, household welfare, and resilience to climate and economic shocks.

• 2015

  The BOMA Project passes an ImpactMatters impact audit[1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Reference material states that BOMA passed an ImpactMatters impact audit, adding an external assessment to its record of nonprofit accountability and program evaluation.

• 2013

  The BOMA Project receives UNFCCC Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activity Award[1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The organization was recognized through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Momentum for Change initiative for work linking women’s livelihoods, poverty reduction, and resilience in climate-affected dryland communities.

• BOMA reports expanded reach among women and household members[1]The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The organization reports that its programs have helped more than 203,000 participants start businesses and have indirectly supported more than one million household members since 2009.

1. 1The BOMA Projecten.wikipedia.org
2. 2The BOMA Project official websitebomaproject.org