| Project Detail |
Amid a security crisis and political transition, Nigers economy remains informal and undiversified, with a largely underemployed population. Through this program, the SDC continues to support the private sector through entrepreneurship in promising agricultural value chains to create decent jobs and incomes for women and youth and help reduce poverty. Nigers political and institutional context is marked by the deterioration of security and the economic and monetary sanctions imposed by ECOWAS and WAEMU following the coup détat of July 26, 2023. This has further weakened the national economic fabric, further impacting already fragile businesses. The lifting of these sanctions in February 2024 has allowed for some recovery and given new impetus to local businesses. The agricultural and rural micro and small enterprise sector constitutes an essential component of the economy and employment. Risks for modern businesses also exist due to climatic hazards, competition from the informal sector, eligibility criteria for financing, and inadequate resources for investments. The sector is dominated by informal and underperforming agricultural businesses. Furthermore, agricultural market systems in Niger operate in a relatively uncompetitive environment, with a multiplicity of actors and weak organization/structuring within agricultural value chains. Financial and non-financial services for agricultural entrepreneurship are poorly decentralized, inaccessible, and not tailored to the specific needs of young people and women. The Local Entrepreneurship Promotion Program (PROMEL) will support the development of agricultural entrepreneurship around promising sectors and access to financing for agricultural businesses by adopting an innovative and inclusive approach for small producers, based on the development of market systems organized in geographical spaces bringing together critical masses of interconnected actors called business clusters (BC). Objectives Promote local entrepreneurship in promising agricultural value chains, generate decent jobs and incomes for young people and women while contributing to the food and nutritional security of households in the Dosso and Maradi regions. |
