Among the first groups of young people supported by the AjeSud project, five young Senegalese people and an economic interest group (EIG) obtained funding in September from a partner financial institution to develop their business. These are the first people to have access to a loan.
Funded thanks to the European Union Emergency Trust Fund, the project to support young people into employment in south Senegal (AjeSud) is being implemented with longstanding partners of GRET: Belgian NGO Eclosio and the Technical and vocational training trust fund (3FPT) (in French only), which is affiliated to the Senegalese Ministry of Technical & Vocational Training and Trades. The activities are conducted taking a holistic approach to facilitate the training/funding/integration continuum, thereby improving the employability of young people aged between 15 and 35 in Senegal.
Access to funding is one of the last stages on the entrepreneurial course, following on from the induction and orientation stages, entrepreneurship training and personalised support from a coach. the latter will continue to support the entrepreneurs funded to realise their investments, implement management tools and respect repayment dates.
Learning to develop and manage a business
Together with ACEP Sénégal (in French only), a leading Senegalese financial institution and also a project partner, GRET developed an innovative credit methodology to enable first time entrepreneurs to have access to funding while minimising the risks for the microfinance institution. This work led to an appropriate financial services offer for young auto-entrepreneurs and micro-businesses in Ziguinchor, Sédhiou, Kolda, Tambacounda and Bakel.
Ndoumbé Gueye, based in Tambacounda in east Senegal, developed a home catering activity after obtaining her Technical Aptitude Certificate in catering. The entrepreneurial course she took as part of the AjeSud project was very useful when it came to officially setting up her business and managing it financially. The business plan drawn up with support from the project made it easier for her to obtain a loan from a bank. “This funding enabled me to travel to Dakar to purchase food supplies at cheaper prices, to invest in new material, reach larger catering service markets and therefore increase my production and improve my productivity. Now I really want to open my own restaurant in Tambacounda”, she tells us.
An estimated 1,500 young entrepreneurs will be supported collectively or individually to develop an economic activity by the end of the project, scheduled for 2021.
