Dear Partner,
Since 2019, the African Union Development Agency (AUDA -NEPAD) has worked closely with several partners, institutions, and shareholders to design and implement the “100 000 MSMEs Initiative”. The initiative results from multilateral, cross-sector, and country partnerships, to accelerate a coordinated and tangible set of responses to the challenge of job creation on the continent.
We are pleased to inform you that AUDA-NEPAD, in partnership with Microsoft, has created a free and online capacity platform for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Africa. The platform is free and contains twenty-two (22) courses in extensive subjects in six (6) languages (Hausa, Amharic, Igbo, French, English, and Yoruba). It will help young entrepreneurs increase their skills and expand their businesses across the continent. Along with a growing community of 38,000 African MSMEs from fifty (50) African countries who already trust and use this platform, we request your presence on the 12th of April 2022 to launch this platform.
About this Initiative
The Initiative addresses four (4) binding constraints, primarily through the development, management, and upkeep of a digital platform to facilitate:
- Capacity and Training: The MSME Academy aims to empower MSMEs with access to critical capabilities that limit their access to growth and finance.
- Access to Market: The MSME Market Place will support MSMEs with access to new markets and growth opportunities.
- A $750bn Financing Gap for MSMEs on the continent: The MSME Finance system will create partnerships to provide diversified, adapted, and direct finance to MSMEs and risk mitigation options.
- Insights and Evidence: Working alongside platform members and partners, we collect quantitative and qualitative data from MSMEs across all AU 55 member States. This information is helping to build more insightful collective intelligence and translate it into policy advisory to the Member States. For example, we are notably seeing more excellent knowledge on public procurement and investment use, harmonization of policy frameworks across the region, and insights on targeted education and social policy innovations.
Join us on 12 April at 10:00 am GMT for the official launch of the new content. You will have an opportunity to see how the platform works, discover the free courses, and get to witness Africa’s growing community of users and entrepreneurs seeking to grow their businesses.
- Register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAldu6spj8sHNU-UhMVecjN51kc5wC_VwLH
- If you are not be able to access the zoom meeting room, you may follow live on AUDA-NEPAD’s YouTube page.
Best Regards,
Amine Idriss Adoum
Director, Programme Delivery & Coordination
AUDA-NEPAD
