Global reach

Since pioneering the WISALA Brookbank Project in 2019 with field partner Come Together Widows and Orphans Organization (CTWOO), Global Fund for Widows has opened 28 Brookbanks, empowering 700 widows and 3,500 of their children. Widows participating in the WISALAs – the first ever of their kind in Kenya – have not only launched successful businesses, but have increased their wealth exponentially, earning a 550% return on their initial investment in their Brookbanks and nearly doubling GFW’s expectations!  Because of its great success, nearly 15,000 widows in Kenya in have placed themselves on the Brookbank waitlist.

In a tremendous vote of confidence, GFW and CTWOO received the endorsement of Kenya’s Ministry of Public Service and Gender, with the Honorable Cabinet Secretary Professor Margaret Kobia offering her support.

GFW and CTWOO have also worked together to deliver meals to widows and their families whose livelihoods have been impacted by the COVID-19 lockdowns across the country.

Global Fund for Widows partnered with our cherished Global Goodwill Ambassador for Widows Chef Vikas Khanna to provide 5.5 million meals to widows and their families during the COVID-19 crisis in his #FeedIndia campaign.

The Sanabank project, launched in 2019, consists of 10 banks being piloted in Najafghar, Vrindavan (known as the "city of widows"), and in Kashmir. Alongwith our partner, Guild for Service, the Sanabank provides financial inclusion to 250 widows, allowing them access to critical funds, and legal training which will facilitate their launch of micro-enterprises.

Cameroon remains one of the most difficult places in the world to be a widow. Global Fund for Widows responded to COVID-19 related hunger and malnutrition in 2020. Partnering with Berine& Bokwe Foundation (BEBOF), Global Fund for Widows offered widows 25,000 meals and funded the launch poultry farms for 240 widows.