Mission of KAS
KAS was established to strengthen the capacity of institutions in the
micro and small enterprises sector. KAS’s mission is to “build
the capacity of microfinance institutions and micro and small enterprises
in Africa and provide technical advice to investors and development partners
in the emerging informal economy”.
To enable the fulfillment of this mission, KAS is committed to providing
high quality services that meet or exceed client expectations, to upholding
high professional and ethical standards and endeavoring to remain at 
the
cutting edge of the microfinance consulting industry by continually improving
the quality of its products.
KAS carries out its operations in a professional manner and never loses
sight of the social objective of the K-Rep Group, namely, to alleviate
poverty.
Background Information
K-Rep Advisory Services Limited (KAS) is a private company registered
in accordance with the Laws of the Republic of Kenya. KAS, a wholly
owned subsidiary of the K-Rep Group of Companies, is a microfinance and
business development firm based in Nairobi, Kenya.
History
In 1984, the Kenya Rural Enterprise Programme started out as a five-year
project to address the financial, management and technical needs of non-governmental
organizations involved in the micro and small enterprises development sector.
From its humble beginnings in the late 20th century, K-Rep has changed,
evolved and developed into a respected multi-functional microfinance enterprise
that is poised to meet the challenges of the African microfinance industry
in the 21st century.
What began as a five-year project funded by USAID has now spawned a
group of four autonomous institutions that make up the K-Rep Group of Companies:
K-Rep Development Agency, K-Rep Bank Limited and K-Rep Advisory Services
Limited.
Structure of the K-Rep Group
K-Rep Group Limited is the holding company with the majority share holding
of all the subsidiary. Its key functions include the coordination
of the operations of its subsidiaries to ensure that they do not drfit
from the mission of the group, despite pursuing their respective specific
objectives. [ More about the K-Rep Group ]
K-Rep Advisory Services Limited, is the consulting and training arm of
the K-Rep Group with the specific mandate to provide consulting and training
services in the microfinance industry all over Africa.
KAS in a Cross-Cultural Context
Poverty alleviation is a worldwide phenomenon and KAS has taken cognize
of this in all aspects of its operations. It has a versatile, multi-functional
workforce that easily adapts to foreign environments and can communicate
effectively with people from different backgrounds and cultures.
KAS recognizes that the ability to communicate across borderlines is crucial
to its success in the global environment.
Thus far, KAS has worked closely with and provided services to communities,
donor agencies and non-governmental organizations all over Africa, in Ethiopia,
Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa,
Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
KAS has over the years gained considerable practical and hands on experience
in all areas of small and micro-enterprise development in Africa.
In time, KAS will achieve its vision to become “the leading consultancy
service provider in the microfinance and micro enterprise sectors in Sub-Saharan
Africa”.
SERVICES PROVIDED BY
KAS
KAS recognizes that the microfinance and micro enterprise sectors in
Africa have the potential to impact significantly to the growth of African
economies. The key to tapping this growth potential is to provide
services that are geared towards building up the microfinance and micro
enterprise sectors all over Africa. To this end, KAS provides the
following services;
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Institutional Capacity Building and Development
KAS has expertise in capacity building of small and micro-enterprise
development organizations to enable them become sustainable, efficient
and profitable. KAS is able to lend its expertise to the development
of sustainable institutions built around clear vision(s) and mission(s),
strong management systems and organizational structures, advising on appropriate
and competitively priced products and services as well as sound strategic
planning and prudent financial management.
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Institutional Reviews and Market Research
KAS carries out research and assessments for clients as part
of their planning and learning strategies because KAS’ experience has proven
that assessing the needs of target markets and obtaining a clear picture
of how the market reacts to new products and services is essential before
designing and implementing programmes. Constant monitoring and careful
assessment of the impact of these services is also instrumental in the
measurement of an institutions performance.
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Project Management
Many microfinance institutions often lack expertise in the introduction
of best practices, market innovative products, or in bringing about radical
changes in the way that they do business, because microfinance is a relatively
new field in Africa. KAS assists its clients to make this transition
by providing not only experienced managers to run their operations on a
contract basis but also creating an opportunity for them to learn from
practice by observation.
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Enterprise Support Services
KAS assists micro and small enterprises obtain credit and develop
their businesses by conducting feasibility studies, preparing business
plans, positioning their businesses appropriately for competition and developing
appropriate internal control and reporting systems. KAS also provides
an advisory service for matters in technology, markets, taxation, economic
assessments, risk analysis, competitive intelligence and law.
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Training
KAS carries out training needs assessments for microfinance
institutions, materials development and curriculum development. KAS
also provides specialized training services in different areas of microfinance
to microfinance institutions and programmes.
