IN SHORT: A presidential low-interest loan scheme is attracting a lot of attention in Kenya – including from scammers. Don’t fall for their tricks.
A message doing the rounds on WhatsApp and Facebook provides a link to a website where people can supposedly apply for low interest loans from Kenyan president William Ruto’s new “hustler fund”.
“Hustlers Empowerment Funding Application Form 2022/2023 online registration exercise which is the quickest to apply for is now out for all bonafide citizens only who needs helping hands in their various Business and Education*,” the garbled message reads.
“The *Payments* has began for all applicants,Register To be Part of the Beneficiaries. *Strictly for Students and Business owners* Check Eligibility and Apply here.”
The hustler fund is a KSh50 billion state-backed scheme to provide cheap loans, including to small businesses, at a yearly interest rate of 8%. It was one of the campaign pledges by Ruto in the run-up to the August 2022 elections – although it was supposed to be interest-free.
To appeal to the majority of young unemployed people in the country, Ruto has long positioned himself as a “hustler”.
Other versions of the message ask people to call or send a WhatsApp message to 0100530899 to “check eligibility and apply”. Another links to a YouTube video.
Phishing scam
The link in the original message leads to a page where the people are asked to enter personal information such as name, phone number, country, region, state…
