Accelerating Regional Business Growth in East Africa

This project contributes to developing a growing resilient and gender-responsive small and medium enterprise (SME) sector in East Africa. It contributes to women’s economic empowerment decent jobs regional trade and investment. Project activities include: (1) developing and delivering tailored trainings on topics including regional marketing strategies and the impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area on SMEs to 1 000 entrepreneurs and managers; (2) enhancing and delivering trainings on private investment processes to 1 000 entrepreneurs and managers and 350 executives of growing and leading gender and environment-smart companies. Also developing effective finance and accounting systems for 300 finance professionals; (3) conducting consultations and developing a needs assessment to enhance the SME Gender Growth Acceleration (SG2X) Investment Playbook. This includes creating and delivering a training program for 50 entrepreneurs and executives on how to adopt and implement the SG2X Guide; (4) organizing 100 hands-on educational apprenticeships in SMEs to teach gender-sensitive managerial competencies and disciplines to women and men executives; (5) hosting educational calls meetings and events with investors to build their knowledge on investing in gender and environment-smart and trade-ready East African SMEs; and (6) strengthening 350 entrepreneurs’ and executives’ pitching marketing and networking capacities.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased participation in regional trade by gender and environment-smart local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in East Africa; (2) enhanced women’s participation and leadership in gender and environment-smart local SMEs in East Africa and implementing gender-equal pay; (3) Increased employment as measured by creating 12 000 jobs of which women account for 50% of the target; and (4) increased capital provided from regional and international financial actors into gender and environment-smart local SMEs in East Africa.