Building investment-ready SMEs through co-entrepreneurship

Challenge

Many SMEs in Kenya and Uganda have strong growth potential but struggle to access finance. These difficulties are largely due to weak organisational structures, limited management skills, and a lack of appropriate tools to meet investor requirements.

Innovative solution

The partners propose an innovative approach that combines hands‑on support with digital tools. At the heart of the initiative is a co‑entrepreneurship model, in which experienced professionals work directly alongside the management teams of SMEs. The aim is to strengthen their capabilities in management, finance, governance and performance management.
This support is reinforced by digital tools that enable structured activity tracking, better use of data and more informed decision‑making. In parallel, the programme provides business development services and support on financial structuring and ESG issues, in order to reduce risks, improve transparency and enhance SMEs’ credibility with investors.

Targeted impact

The project contributes to the emergence of stronger, better‑managed SMEs that are able to attract responsible investment. In the short and medium term, it will:

• strengthen the managerial and financial skills of eight SMEs in Kenya and Uganda;
• improve their governance and economic performance, with a target increase in turnover of 7.5%;
• facilitate access to appropriate and sustainable financing;
• create or consolidate 150 decent jobs;
• strengthen local value chains and entrepreneurial ecosystems in both countries.

In the longer term, the initiative aims to establish a replicable and scalable model capable of supporting the development of viable, high‑impact SMEs in other countries.