By Ebi Kesiena
African Development Bank Group and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on Thursday announced the establishment of a joint taskforce to support entrepreneurship, in order to boost job creation in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia.
This was contained in a statement distributed by APO Group on behalf of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB).
According to the statement, the official launch of the taskforce took place on Thursday, September 21, 2023, during a workshop in Tunis, at the North Africa Regional Office of the African Development Bank.
The statement explained that the Joint North Africa Task Force on Entrepreneurship and MSMEs for jobs impact will operate under the Framework Partnership Agreement signed by the EBRD and the AfDB in May 2021.
Also, the taskforce will ensure that the two institutions will jointly identify and implement innovative and operational initiatives to tackle the challenges faced by micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) development.
Furthermore, the statement indicated that initiatives include developing knowledge products and innovative solutions to inform and co-finance operations that promote the export capacity and growth potential of MSMEs.
Adding that this work will focus on supporting the emergence of start-ups, businesses led by women and youth, or operations linking the development of MSMEs and start-ups to regional and local value chains.
‘‘This programme aims at identifying high-potential start-ups and mobilise global expertise to support their operations and assist them in scaling up.
‘‘This assistance will last over an 18-month a period and allow start-ups to further develop their activities and access international markets,’’ the statement read.
