United Social Ventures

We believe that social ventures are the best level for young changemakers to lead change. Why?

1. Equitable - Anyone can create one - you don't need wealth/privilege, just ingenuity.
2. Impact - They prioritise impact over profits & are centered on their users.
3. Sustainability - Their market-based nature - continuously selling the same product - give them a permanence.
4.  Scalability - They are designed to solve systemic challenges for all.

While Uganda tops the charts as the most entrepreneurial country in the world - almost 30% of young people are engaged in the early stages of setting up and running an enterprise - the majority of these startups never fulfill their potential. 21% go out of business every year and only 2% expect to employ 20+ people in the next five years (GEM, 2015). There's a national "missing middle" of MSMEs valued at $4.87 billion and globally in lower income countries this gap is $5.2 trillion (IFC, 2017).

We believe this 'Pioneer Gap' is largely caused by a vicious circle: Entrepreneurs progress slowly, lacking a framework to get started, so the vast majority never reach a stage where they are attractive to funders (and their friends and family don't have the ability to help to this stage), therefore entrepreneurs observe their chances of success are low and never fully commit to their ideas - however innovative - and so progress is even slower.