The Basa Fund
The Basa Fund
For the past few years, we’ve been testing an idea in Zimbabwe.
What happens when you invest in job creators who are already building good businesses, but don’t have access to the capital they need to grow?
The answer is starting to take shape. The Basa Fund invests in small and medium-size businesses with one clear goal: create jobs. Because after more than 25 years working alongside communities around the world, we’ve learned that one of the best ways to end poverty is to create a job.
It started with conversations between business leaders in Zimbabwe and the U.S. What emerged was a different way of thinking about economic development, built around local entrepreneurs, practical business training, and investment capital that can be used again and again.
And underneath it all is a simple belief: Ideas need believers.
MATTERbox: UnitedHealthcare Week of Culture
During UHC’s annual Week of Culture, 74 team members came together across two MATTERbox packing events to pack 2,000 Snack Packs for the community.
Tessa Hanna, a participant in one event shared, it was “a perfect blend of purpose and connection—giving back to the community while bonding with teammates from all over the country.”
Two events. One shared purpose. A lasting impact.l leaders. He brought that knowledge home, and his family planted their own garden, working chaya into daily meals.
Growing Chaya Champions at Kings Primary School
A small stem can grow into something powerful. At Kings Primary School, it is growing into better nutrition, greater resilience, and young leaders.
On July 22, members of the school’s Eco-Club trained to become Chaya Champions. They learned about Chaya’s nutritional benefits, how to grow it from stem cuttings, and how to harvest and prepare it safely.
These young ambassadors will now share their knowledge with 260 students and families throughout the community. Kitchen staff also received training to incorporate Chaya into school meals, laying the foundation for lasting impact.
That is how change grows. One cutting. One meal. One student at a time.
MATTER Education: MCRI Student Spotlight – Belinda Sithole
Meet Belinda Sithole! From uncertainty after school to a career in tech as a full-stack developer and Program Analyst 1 at Mains’l Solutions.
As part of the second MCRI cohort, Belinda and her fellow cohort members helped pave the way for the program, learning not just how to code but the soft skills that carry a career forward.
Her advice to her 19-year-old self: “Trust the process. Everything is going to be okay.”