Some 6,000 Cameroonian micro entrepreneurs will soon be schooled on basic financial and entrepreneurial skills and the use of mobile money and technology.
The training project, designed by the Youth Employment Services, YES Cameroon, a non-governmental organisation in Yaounde, is aimed at enhancing economic, financial and social inclusion among young entrepreneurs so they can grow their business and create economic opportunities for themselves.
According to a press release signed by YES Cameroon’s Executive Director, Gilbert Ewehmeh, the first phase of the project will start with the training of trainers to train some 40 certified master trainers selected from the 10 Regions of Cameroon.
The release also states that the pilot phase will begin in the Nyong and Kele Division in the weeks ahead, while the last phase will comprise putting up a Business Angel Fund aimed at supporting some of the innovative ideas that will be selected in the course of the project.
In the release,Ewehmeh urged financial institutions, development partners and other stakeholders in and out of Cameroon to support the initiative which he says will go a long way to change the livelihood of the beneficiaries, hence boost the Cameroon business sector.
During the official launch of the project on June 14 at the ST Muna Foundation, it was revealed that more than 80 percent of micro entrepreneurs in Cameroon still don’t have saving accounts and still lack access to credit and financial institutions, despite the numerous financial institutions.
The project is one among the numerous programmes, training workshops and seminars that YES Cameroon has been organising on entrepreneurship and career development for the past 10 years to promote and support entrepreneurs in Cameroon.