The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Access Bank’s Access Africa Office have entered into a three-year partnership aimed at expanding access to finance, business skills and markets for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 14 African countries.

The initiative was launched through a memorandum of understanding signed on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. It is intended to support SMEs in creating jobs, strengthening their businesses and participating more actively in intra-African trade.

The programme will start with a pilot in Ghana running from September 2026 to June 2027. Women-led businesses will be prioritised during the initial phase, after which the initiative is scheduled to expand to other countries from 2027.

The partnership will centre on five areas: job creation through SMEs, access to finance for women- and youth-owned businesses, business sustainability, capacity building and market access.

Under the skills component, participating businesses will receive digital trade training. They will also be supported in accessing markets across Africa through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The initiative is intended to address key constraints affecting SME growth across Africa, including limited access to credit, weak market connections and gaps in trade-related skills.

Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director of the ITC, said access to finance remains a major barrier preventing small businesses from expanding into trade.

She said the partnership would go beyond financing by providing businesses with knowledge, networks and market connections needed to grow.

Seyi Kumapayi, Executive Director, African Subsidiaries at Access Bank, said capital must be combined with skills and market access if SMEs are to scale.

For the Ghana pilot, ITC’s digital learning tools and training-of-trainers programmes will be used alongside staff from the Access Africa Office. Beginning in 2027, the partners plan to extend the programme to additional countries and introduce advanced modules focused on sustainability standards and digital marketplace tools.

Access Bank operates more than 700 branches across 25 countries on three continents and serves more than 63 million customers. Its network will support the partnership’s efforts to reach businesses across the continent.

The programme will cover Angola, Botswana, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.

The initiative is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals covering gender equality, decent work and economic growth, as well as industry, innovation and infrastructure.

By bringing financing together with business skills and market access, the programme is intended to help participating SMEs strengthen their operations, enter new markets and contribute to employment across the participating African economies.

Source: msmeafricaonline