Woman’s Inheritance Helps 10,000 African Entrepreneurs

A daughter who was left £2,000 by her dying father has used the money to create a charity that has helped 10,000 African entrepreneurs. 

Vashti Seth, from Bristol was disappointed when her father John Richards bequeathed personal gifts to each one of her siblings, but left her out.  However, she was later handed an envelope filled with cash and a handwritten note that read, “Do something good with it.” 

While Ms. Seth was unsure as to the message’s meaning, after visiting a Tibetan orphan named Deki Dolkha, she was struck with an idea.  Ms. Seth was inspired by the hardships Deki faced and subsequently decided to set up a charity to help budding entrepreneurs in the world’s poorest countries. 

The organization, called Deki, has now helped more than 10,000 people establish businesses and secure their future earnings with the crowd-funding website.  Generous lenders give small loans to those in need, who, after beginning their business and turning a profit, hand back the original loan money to investors.  “The website helps people who want to set up a business, but who have no opportunity to do it.  Its for hard working people who want the opportunity,” said Ms. Seth.

See Emma Glanfield, ‘Do Something Good’—Daughter Turns Father’s Last Words and £2,000 Bequest Into Charity Which Has Helped 10,000 African Entrepreneurs Build Their Own Businesses, Daily Mail, Dec. 23, 2014.