Nairobi Woman Widowed At Young Age Grows Family Business Into Multi-Million Cancer Centre

• Anne Waita may have lost her husband, but he is proud of her wherever he is after she managed to build a family business
• Waita told TUKO.co.ke that lost her partner after they established the Nairobi Radiotherapy and Cancer Centre, leaving her to manage it singlehandedly
• With a promise to self to continue his legacy, the widow has grown the small venture into a state-of-the-art cancer treatment centre

Anne Waita and her husband established the Nairobi Radiotherapy and Cancer Centre (NRCC) in 2005 to offer healthcare services to the rising number of cancer cases in Kenya.

Since both were employed, the venture was more of a side hustle until it grew and officially became a limited company on April 24, 2009.

Waita lost her partner

With the business posting exponential growth, Waita boldly decided to resign from her job and commit herself fully to managing NRCC.

It was a journey that they both looked forward to until the brutal hand of death robbed the visionary woman of her beloved partner.

With her husband’s legacy to keep, the burden of maintaining the facility singlehandedly lay on the widow’s shoulders, a development she had not envisioned.

Waita told TUKO.co.ke that despite the setback, she promised herself to grow the facility from the modest venture into a state-of-the-art cancer treatment centre.

Challenges with funding

As the general manager, she embraced the business's responsibilities, often guided by memories of her departed co-founder.

With her eyes set on even bigger things, she took a leap of faith and decided to buy land to build her facility instead of renting space.

“I remember approaching a local bank for funding, but I was told it was impossible to give a loan to a medical facility,” she recalled.

One of the most challenging moments for her was during the pandemic, as business slowed tremendously, pushing her to one of the lowest moments.

Kenyan women entrepreneurs struggle with funding

Waita’s is a story of resilience as she has built NRCC into a formidable healthcare center with several branches nationwide.

This is against the backdrop of operating in an environment that offers limited support to women in business.

A recent report by TUKO.co.ke indicated that of all the women with businesses, 64% reported experiencing challenges accessing credit, while 65% said they find it hard to finance their businesses.

"I managed to get a loan from the Medical Credit Fund (MCF), which I could pay daily without worrying about lumpsum repayments," she said.

Why women struggle to get business loans

An official from MCF told TUKO.co.ke that female entrepreneurs generally encounter challenges accessing adequate financing because many do not use it on investments.

"A 2020 study on women’s entrepreneurship in Africa showed that only 34% of women engaged with the banking sector, as opposed to 47% of men," the official stated.

The disparity in loan amounts granted to men against women is attributed to a lack of awareness, limited networks, and an inability to meet collateral and asset requirements.

Waita has every reason to be confident that she made her late husband proud, but she has her eyes set on even more significant achievements.

Proofreading by Asher Omondi, current affairs journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.