Seventy-four young people have been selected to receive support for the establishment and monitoring of their agri-food businesses in Côte d’Ivoire, following six months of training at the PEJEDEC 3 incubator. Their projects were presented on Friday, October 9, in Abidjan, to a World Bank delegation led by Trina Haque.
The meeting took place at the headquarters of the European Institute for Cooperation and Development (IECD), in Cocody-Riviera Bonoumin, in the presence of the Minister for the Promotion of Youth, Professional Integration, and Civic Service, Mamadou Touré. The IECD is implementing this incubation program.
The program combines technical training, business management, business plan development, and fundraising. Of the 90 young people who completed the theoretical and practical course, 74 were selected to continue with their entrepreneurial project, according to data presented during the visit and reported by l’AIP.
Mamadou Touré called for mobilizing more resources to support the processing activities of local productions. Trina Haque, Regional Director in charge of Human Capital at the World Bank, praised the dynamism of the beneficiaries and their ability to create jobs.
Among the entrepreneurs met, William Essoh operates a cassava processing unit in Samo, in the locality of Bonoua, producing attiéké and related products. He presented a dehydrated attiéké and explained that he had received funding exceeding 5 million FCFA to purchase equipment and improve his yields.
In Anono, in the Cocody district, Aurélie Kouassi is preparing to launch the products of her brand “Le Grenier du Chef.” Her project focuses on fruit juices available in nine flavors. She has undergone training in food processing, management, digital marketing, and taxation.
According to his testimony collected by Abidjan.net, his production unit is established and the funding intended for machinery and marketing is in the process of being received. The financial support announced for his project amounts to 4,976,500 FCFA.
These activities fall under the Youth Employment and Skills Development Project, whose third phase targets 100,220 young people nationwide. This objective encompasses several integration pathways, beyond the sole agri-food incubator.
The IECD is already supporting small Ivorian businesses through its partner Côte d’Ivoire Entreprises Développement. In 2017, a service carried out at the request of the authorities enabled the training of more than 4,200 project leaders and entrepreneurs, followed in 2018 by support for loan beneficiaries supervised by the State.
