A loan helped empower over 470 women micro-entrepreneurs to distribute basic health & hygiene products in rural Bangladesh.


Jita Bangladesh's story

Rural Bangladeshis have limited access to affordable, quality, essential goods such as sanitary napkins, laundry detergent, antiseptic soap, and toothpaste. There are limited decent work opportunities available in the largely unstructured rural markets and women are restricted from economic participation and ownership of resources due to gender biased norms.

JITA is a social enterprise that operates the largest last-mile distribution network in Bangladesh, supplying consumer goods that promote better health, hygiene and nutrition. JITA's unique model sources products from Bangladesh's largest companies and multinational corporations and employs a salesforce of women micro-entrepreneurs, known as Aparajitas, which is Bengali for "women who do not accept defeat.” Through JITA, rural micro-entrepreneurs are able to generate sustainable supplemental income and consumers from marginalized communities are able to improve their quality of life.

Since 2012, JITA has trained more than 3,000 women in business and entrepreneurial skills and has enabled access to basic goods for more than 17 million Bangladeshis. Underemployed women in JITA’s sales network have increased their incomes by 47% within the first few months of working as an Aparajita.

This loan of $100,000 will help JITA cover operational costs and sustain their workforce while they recover from the impacts of COVID-19. This is JITA's first loan through Kiva's Social Enterprise program.


This loan is special because:

it provides health, hygiene, and nutrition products via an all-women distribution network in rural Bangladesh.



Loan details


Lenders and lending teams




Loan details