Visa and ITC partners to strengthen the financial capabilities of young and e-commerce businesses in Africa.

In order to give youth-led and e-commerce firms in Africa the tools, training, and resources they require to improve their financial skills, the International Trade Centre (ITC) and Visa have partnered.

The collaboration makes use of both ITC’s efforts to empower young people in trade through the use of appropriate digital tools and Visa’s broad capabilities, resources, and expertise in payment solutions.

According to Pamela Coke-Hamilton, executive director of the ITC, “young people with their creative ideas and entrepreneurial spirit are the future of Africa, and digital is the shortest distance between them and global markets.” Young company owners will get the resources and financial know-how necessary to scale their operations thanks to our new relationship with Visa.

The recently formed alliance seeks to update and enhance the ITC Online Payment Solution Finder, which assists businesses in locating appropriate payment solutions and distribution channels in each particular nation by providing background data and connections for the solutions listed. The cooperation will also make Visa’s small business-specific financial management and financial literacy resources available to the Ye! Community network of ITC’s young entrepreneurs.

The ITC ecomConnect platform will incorporate Visa’s educational materials on business and financial management for entrepreneurs, assisting e-commerce companies around the world. Visa will also host technical webinars to promote youth-led and e-commerce firms, covering online payment solution-related topics and answering queries from business owners and industry professionals.

“As a global leader in payments, Visa is uniquely positioned to drive inclusive economic growth with strong partners, like ITC,” said Carl Manlan, Vice President and Head of Inclusive Impact and Sustainability for Visa Central Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA). “Visa will upskill Africa’s next generation of young digital entrepreneurs and small to medium-sized businesses to drive innovation and to catalyze socioeconomic transformation.”

Giving Africa’s primarily young population—more than 60% of whom are under 25—the business and technical skills necessary to enter the workforce in an increasingly digital world is essential for promoting economic progress throughout the continent. Both Visa and ITC commit to fostering success for young African entrepreneurs – with the ultimate objective to facilitate sustainable, resilient and dynamic economies for all.