About Kuyasa

What we do:

Kuyasa provides microfinance services to those with secure occupational rights, typically home owners, who are excluded from formal finance, in the belief that improving the quality of housing adds essential social value and because no other appropriate sources of housing finance are available to low-income households. Our clients, who earn under R 3,500 a month or are informally employed, are eligible for loans of up to R10,000 for use in improving their housing situation.

Our Objectives:

• To provide responsible access to credit to those outside the formal banking sector, particularly to traditionally vulnerable groups including women and the elderly.
• To support this access to credit through promoting saving groups and regular repayment.
• To provide credit with the aim of improving housing and building social capital.
• To enable clients to build adequately sized houses which meet their needs.
• To provide an example of successful lending to the financially marginalised and to pioneer a methodology for finding sustainable solutions to poverty.

Where we work:

Kuyasa began operations in the Cape Town region of South Africa. Today, our operations cover 2 states, namely the Western and Eastern Cape, across rural, semi-urban and urban areas of the country.

Kuyasa's expansion plan for the next five years will focus on increasing market penetration in areas where we currently have a strong presence. This will be done by establishing Customer Service Center’s in smaller townships along the routes to large cities. Kuyasa will then launch new branches in these tactical epicenters.

Our Customer Service Centers (CSC) are typically located in high traffic transportation hubs. They are low cost contact points that allow clients and potential clients to easily access Kuyasa for enquiries, information, loan applications etc. In addition, the center also serves as a base from which loans officers can liaise with clients and source potential borrowers.

Additionally, Kuyasa will open new branches to serve some of the smaller towns outside of Cape Town (Stellenbosch, Paarl and Worchester) and Port Elizabeth (Uitenhage and Kirkwood). This strategy will consolidate existing infrastructure while increasing market penetration.

To ensure sustainable expansion, Kuyasa will roll out branches at a conservative pace over the next two years. This will ensure operational and financial structures are in place before more rapid national growth is assumed.