About LINKAGES
Get to know all about us. Our journey, founding story, and the team that is behind our impact.
Penny Mbabazi -Founder
Our journey started with a vision – one that saw opportunities where others saw none. LINKAGES was born out of a simple yet profound belief that, access to financial resources should be available for all. Today, we are empowering thousands of women and youth across Uganda by providing microloans, financial literacy training and the tools they need to build sustainable businesses. Because when women access credit, families change, communities thrive, and nations prosper.
Where Others Saw Poverty, We Saw Opportunity…
What started as a small idea, giving women small loans to start businesses in their village markets to start business, has become a national movement. We have had firsthand experience of what access to finance can do. These women are sending their children to school, strengthening families and reviving communities.
The Power of Group Lending…
When I founded LINKAGES, my goal was clear. I wanted to create opportunities women and young people in rural villages across Uganda to shape their own future. I began with 3,000 dollars and three groups (Village Savings and Loan Associations) and gave each group (20-25 members) 800 dollars.
Within two cycles of three months each group, every loan was repaid 100%, proving that when given the right tools, people can take charge of their own progress.
We Continue to Build…
Today, what started as a simple idea has evolved into a movement of resileince and economic transformation. Thousands of women and youth under our program across Uganda are not only rising out of poverty but they are also driving meaningful change in their communities.
It is possible that together we can create opportunities, break the cycle of poverty, and transform communities. Join our mission and let’s create change, one business, one family, and one community at a time.
Meet Joyce: Rising with Grace in Gulu, Northern Uganda. At 58, Joyce is not just a mother. She is a fighter, a dreamer, and a light in her community. Living in Gulu, Northern Uganda, Joyce is a member of Rwot Lacika Women’s Saving Group, translated to mean, “The Lord is Merciful.” For many years, Joyce ran a small shop selling beans, maize, and peas. But like many women in rural Uganda, Joyce faced many challenges when it came to growing her business; long loan processes, high interest rates, and the collateral demands she could never meet on her own. However, all this changed when her friend whom she worked with in Gulu market introduced her to LINKAGES. With her first micro-loan of 216 dollars, Joyce added groundnuts to her inventory, a simple step that doubled her monthly income. She then applied for a second loan of 270 dollars from her group. With this second loan, her profits grew even more, and so did her courage. Today, Joyce’s shop is thriving. She has hired a young woman, paid school fees for her child who attends school with in Gulu district, and she is now dreaming of helping her employee to return to school too. Her hope? To buy land, expand her shop, and keep building a legacy. Joyce’s story reminds us why we do what we do that, when women rise, they carry entire communities with them.
Meet Beatrice Bako: Small savings. Big impact From saving 4000UGX a week to building a business that empowers girls in North-Western Uganda. When Beatrice first joined her local Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) group in her village Bweyale, Kiryandongo district, she was saving just 4,000UGX (about $1.30) each week. It was a small start, but for Beatrice, it was the beginning of something much bigger. Today, Beatrice owns a vibrant African print tailoring business employing four girls who dropped out of school during the COVID-19 pandemic. The young women who once were uncertain of what the future holds for them, now have income, purpose and new dreams. It is women like Beatrice whose courage inspires us each day to fulfill our mission. But Beatrice did not stop there. After her business gained more stability, she took on two other girls under her wing, training and mentoring them to start their own tailoring businesses. During one of our visits, one of the girls shared, “Without Beatrice’s mentorship, I never would have had the courage to imagine owning a business. Because of her, today I can dream again. I want to grow my shop and train other girls, just like she did for me.” For us at LINKAGES, Beatrice’s story is more than a tale of financial growth, it’s about transformation, mentorship, and passing on the light. She has proved that when women are given tools and support, they don’t just rise, they lift others with them |
Penny Mbabazi
Founder & Executive Director
Jennifer Adokorach
Field Coordinator – North Western Uganda
Eric Okwera
Field Coordinator – Northern Uganda
Jotham Musinguzi
Field Coordinator – Western Uganda
Joshua Mutama
Financial Consultant
Addah Mushabe
Volunteer – Technology uptake
Lucky Kyomuhangi
Admin Assistant
Medicine Abert Ahamya
Volunteer – Community Mobilization
Paul Nuwagaba
Lead Trainer and Consultant
Our lead Training Consultant has over 25 years of experience in financial sector delivering advanced skills training for both local and international programs.
Paul has diverse expertise in corporate finance, financial analysis, conducting market research, business trainings, coaching and mentorship working with small and medium enterprises, donor organizations, financial institutions (commercial banks, Savings and Credit Corporative (SACCOs), farmers groups and individuals.
He is a Fellow of The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA), Chartered Management Accountant (CIMA) and holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Finance, A Diploma in Accounting and Finance and several certificates in the same field.
Paul Abaikiriza
Trainer
Our training consultant, Paul, embodies the spirit of social entrepreneurship, bringing a wealth of experience in community mobilization and training to the table.
With a remarkable seven-year journey in the field, he has honed his expertise in business finance, financial literacy, and business development skills. Paul has dedicated himself to working with last-mile entrepreneurs, bridging the gap between rural and urban communities.
His commitment extends beyond theoretical knowledge, as he is the visionary founder of PAUFE Financial Services Ltd. This company stands as a testament to his dedication to empowering low-income earners in rural Uganda by providing them with access to financial resources through responsible loans.