World Bank, ECOWAS Empower SMEs in Renewable Energy Sector
Editor
The World Bank, in collaboration with the Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS), has launched a training workshop for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the renewable energy sector. The Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project (ROGEAP) training workshop, themed “Building Sustainable Business in Off-Grid Solar PV Sector,” aims to increase electricity access in the ECOWAS and Sahel region.
The Commissioner for Internal Services, ECOWAS Commission, Prof. Nazifi Darma, emphasized the importance of empowering SMEs in the renewable energy sector. “The aim of this training is to raise businesses that have the capacity to increase electricity in most parts of Africa,” he said.
Prof. Darma noted that young Africans have a crucial role to play in developing businesses that will lead to the prosperity of the continent. “There are over 32 billion small and medium-scale businesses in Nigeria alone,” he said. “When energy is cheap, products and services will be cheap also. All of us know that the cost of energy occupies a disproportionate component of the cost of operation in any business. So, where energy is cheap, business operations become cheaper, the product and services become more affordable, and livelihood, profit, and expansion become more guaranteed.”
The Team Lead, Regional ROGEAP Entrepreneurship Support Facility, Salamatu Baba Tunzwang, explained that the project aims to increase sustainable electricity access across 19 countries in Africa in the ECOWAS block and seven other Sahelian countries. “We want to build a sustainable ecosystem or solar PV businesses, and by doing so, support them in terms of information exchange, access to finance,” she said.
The workshop is designed to build the capacity of small businesses in the area of off-grid solar and business management and help businesses network. Participants were carefully selected for the project to go through the capacity-building program.
The project is held in partnership with Ecobank. The Divisional Head, Federal Capital Territory and North, Ecobank Nigeria, Mr. Tunde Dawodu, promised participants that the training will positively impact small businesses and the economy in general. “At the end of this three-day training, the organizers would assess the viability of their projects, the viability of their models working with the technical team, and those who do qualify will have access to the grant to enhance their growth and expansion,” he said.
The Senior Adviser ROGEAP, Mr. Elhadji Sylla, noted that the three-day training workshop is designed to strengthen the capacity of SMEs. “The training is not limited to only Nigeria but across Africa,” he said.
The Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project (ROGEAP) for SMEs in Nigeria will also be held in Lagos and other African countries.
