President of France Emmanuel Macron has revealed that his government is set to invest 2.5 billion euros in African businesses through a project dubbed Choose Africa.
The funds will be used to finance and support 10,000 African startups, VSEs, and SMEs by 2022.
Choose Africa is being implemented by the AFD Group and Proparco.
According to TechMoran, 1 billion euros will be invested in equity in start-ups, small businesses and SMEs in Africa while EUR 1.5 billion will be used to facilitate access to credit for small and medium-sized enterprises via public or private local financial institutions (microfinance institutions, banks, leasing companies, etc.).
Through Choose Africa, France reaffirms its commitment to support innovation, entrepreneurship and ultimately job creation.
Start-ups, small and medium-sized enterprises play a key role in job creation, economic growth, and innovation.
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In Africa, these companies will have a fundamental role to play in welcoming the 450 million young people who will join the labor market by 2050.
The lack of adequate financing remains a major obstacle, which hinders entrepreneurs’ ambition and limits the potential of their companies. Today, only 20% of SMEs in Africa have access to bank loans and 87% of start-ups have no access to financing.
Emmanuel Macron is on a three-day trip to Africa to boost trade with Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Kenya.
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