German Development Agency (GIZ) and the Agribusiness Development Centre (ADC) have joined forces to support 200 agribusinesses in Uganda next year.
This cooperation is within the framework of the Enhancing the Competitiveness of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (ECOS) project, where both GIZ and ADC shall ensure increased access to finance, investments and financial readiness. They will also ensure market developments, innovations and upgrading quality management systems for the selected enterprises.
Donald Agaba, the head of programme at E4D, said the cooperation between the two parties seeks to address various challenges affecting agribusinesses, including lack of proper governance, and structures, high financial exposure to risk management expertise, and poor quality of products and tools.
“Through this partnership, we shall also conduct a business acceleration programme targeting 100 small and medium-sized agribusinesses of which 40% shall be women-led by providing training, business mentorship and coaching to trigger linkages for at least 50% of them, thus creating 50 jobs by the end of 2023,” he added in a media advert.
Agaba said: “Offering price risk management training, support financial management and cash flow projects to 100 small and medium agribusinesses will also take place where two price risk management courses and exposure to the use of simple financial packages and digital tools to improve efficiency shall be conducted”.
He also mentioned that this project shall in addition incentivise participation and commitment to change by equipping at least 40 enterprises with simple financial packages that can innovatively improve their record-keeping and financial packages and digital tools to improve efficiency shall be conducted.
The ECOS Project was launched in April 2022 with the major objective of increasing the competitiveness of 1,000 Ugandan SMEs situations of 22,000 people. This project is implemented by GIZ through a consortium of firms (GOPA) worldwide consultants, Agriculture and Financial (AFC).
