How Equity Group Is Providing African Solutions To African Problems

Africa is a great continent with great opportunities. Africa is among the few continents in the world where all natural resources are found. It is also the only continent that is often referred to as a “youthful continent” given that many people are young and energetic.

Despite the amazing potential, Africa is still poor with the majority of the population still going to bed without a single meal. The majority of African youth are also without jobs. The Covid-19 pandemic just made matters worse and many people were thrown deep into poverty.

It is time to realize that Africa needs its own African solutions from the African people. Nobody from outside the continent will come to liberate the continent from the shackles of poverty, unemployment, and diseases.

Entrepreneurship is increasingly seen as a key to growth in Africa. This is one of the generators of employment opportunities in the continent, employing about 86 percent and contributing about 45 percent to GDP in most countries across Africa.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, SMEs are one of the biggest formal employers. According to the African Development Bank, 22 percent of Africa’s working population are starting businesses. In as much as this potential is promising, entrepreneurs in Africa continue to face immense challenges.

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Some of the challenges facing the SME sector in Africa include lack of capital, market access, skills training, as well as administrative barriers. The key to African economic power is in the hands of the private sector and needs to be tapped as soon as possible.

At the same time, in the Sub-Saharan region, about 40 percent of the population is under the age of 15 years. This makes Africa the “youngest” continent in the world. With a youthful and energetic population, Africa’s potential is unmatched.

The launch of the Eastern and Central Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan by Equity Group could not have come at a better time. This is a private sector-focused stimulus package to accelerate economic recovery and resilience in the   Eastern and Central Africa region as it recovers from the devastating health, social, humanitarian, and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Eastern and Central Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan is envisaged to provide financing of up to 2 percent of the combined GDP of the six economies, in which the Group operates, to the private sector in the form of blended financing of short-term overdrafts, medium-term loans, and credit facilities which require long-term project and development financing.

“A total of 678 billion shillings will be available to 5 million MSMEs and 25 million individual borrowers for the next 5 years.

The plan conceives that the 5 million businesses largely comprising MSMEs will create 50 million jobs, 25 million jobs directly and an equal number of jobs indirectly as the ecosystems of business become more cohesive, connected, and ultimately synergize and grow,” said Dr. James Mwangi, Equity Group Managing Director and CEO.

The recovery plan will have a special focus on youth and women, supporting them to be the primary drivers of creating and expanding opportunities in the real economy.

Under the Young Africa Works Initiative in partnership and collaboration with the Mastercard Foundation, the plan will build capacity in young people through financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, and digital literacy.

To ensure that no one will be left behind, lending to young people will be complemented with credit guarantee facilities to mitigate default through our credit risk pricing model that has opened inclusive credit access to all.