Afreximbank, GAIN partner to empower young entrepreneurs

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has announced its collaborative effort with the Grand Africa Initiative (GAIN) through a grant aimed at facilitating the training of 300 young African entrepreneurs.

The training program which will focus on entrepreneurship and intra-African trade, will commence in March 2024, according to a statement.

The GAIN-Afreximbank Masterclass on Entrepreneurship and Intra-African Trade has been meticulously designed to equip young African entrepreneurs from various regions of the African continent with essential skills to foster the growth and expansion of their enterprises beyond their individual national borders.

Over a comprehensive six-week program, participants will gain valuable insights into how to build and expand their businesses leveraging the intra-African Market. Participants will receive technical guidance, practical training, and business advisory from a faculty of international experts.

Moreover, this program aims to enhance inclusivity in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by offering interventions that specifically support young Africans, women, and small and medium-sized enterprises.

Yusuf Daya, director, AU/AfCFTA relations and trade policy, Afreximbank emphasized the crucial importance of capacitating young African entrepreneurs to take full advantage of the opportunities availed by the AfCFTA.

“Our renewed support to the GAIN Masterclass underscores the Bank’s efforts to develop skills of African youth and build African entrepreneurial capacity under the Afreximbank Academy (AFRACAD). We look forward to an even more successful program in 2024 following the highly impactful masterclass in 2022 which helped build the capacity of 200 entrepreneurs from across the continent”.

Jerry Ojima Momoh, partnership lead at GAIN, expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “This marks the fifth edition of GAIN Entrepreneurship masterclass series designed to empower African youths. We have two series so far focused on training women and three series now open to both male and female. We are happy to have this partnership with Afreximbank again this year to provide invaluable entrepreneurial support to young entrepreneurs.