SI AnnRev2021 web - Flipbook - Page 7
SHARED INTEREST SOCIETY ANNUAL REVIEW 2021 7
WHAT WE DO
Shared Interest is an ethical finance
organisation, supporting people in remote
and disadvantaged communities to trade
and earn a living.
We act co-operatively with investors coming
together to achieve a common goal and
holding 10,456 Share Accounts. We use their
collective £50.7m of investment to provide
loans and credit facilities, primarily to fair
trade businesses, to ensure that farmers and
artisans are paid on time for their products.
Our finance helps handcraft organisations
to buy raw materials, and enables
co-operatives to pre-finance orders from
their overseas buyers. We support the
production of coffee, fresh fruit, nuts and
cocoa, as well as handcrafts such as woven
baskets and furniture.
Our work is not just about providing finance
on fair terms. The fair trade producers we
work with say that we have helped transform
their communities. Last year, our members
helped make a positive impact on the lives
of 374,249 individuals, 33% of whom are
women.
Our in-country presence remains vital in
growing the local knowledge required to
supply a large proportion of this finance
to producers in remote communities. As
we continue to align our work with the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),
gender equality remains important to us and
we know that over a third of the producers
we reach are women.
IN 2021
WE LENT MONEY TO...
887,900
,000
OVER
175
PRODUCER
GROUPS
WITH
8,262
PERMANENT
EMPLOYEES
AND
374,249
FARMERS & ARTISANS
INCLUDING 124,089 WOMEN