Aug 16, 2023

16-08-2023 13:11:44 | by: Marlene Mutimawase | hits: 73 | Tags: The eco.business Fund Development Facility (EBF DF) and SANAD Technical Assistance Facility (SANAD TAF), managed by Finance in Motion, are proud sponsors of Absa’s InspireMe 2023 Conference. The three-day event, organized by Absa Bank in Ghana, brought together women business entrepreneurs from across the African continent, aiming to provide them with the necessary tools and resources to achieve sustainable growth. The annual InspireMe Conference serves as a pivotal component of Absa's women banking proposition, designed to support and empower women-owned businesses through tailored and value-added financial and capacity-building solutions. This dynamic platform fostered networking, knowledge-sharing, and collaboration, creating an environment where women entrepreneurs could thrive in their respective industries. During the conference, the SANAD Fund and eco.Business Fund sponsored regional collaboration and trade talks by supporting the participation of women entrepreneurs. These collaborative efforts aimed to strengthen partnerships and facilitate trade opportunities among women entrepreneurs across different regions, including Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, and Zambia. One of the highlight sessions of the conference, titled "Empowering Women's Economic Growth Together," featured Finance in Motion as a participant in a panel discussion. This session explored collaborative approaches to foster women's economic empowerment, addressing the challenges and opportunities prevalent in the region. The panel aimed to drive meaningful change and sustainable development in women-led businesses by bringing together diverse perspectives and expertise. As advocates for sustainable development and gender equality, EBF DF and SANAD TAF are committed to supporting initiatives that empower women and foster their economic growth. By sponsoring the InspireMe conference, they aim to promote meaningful discussions and actions that will drive positive change for women in sub-Saharan Africa, unlock their full potential, lead to more inclusive and prosperous growth, and ultimately, contribute to the sustainable development of African economies. The eco.business Fund aims to promote business and consumption practices that contribute to biodiversity conservation, to the sustainable use of natural resources, and to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts in Latin America, the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa. By providing financing for business practices that conserve nature and foster biodiversity, the fund seeks investments with both environmental and financial returns. The eco.business Fund provides financing through three avenues: local financial institutions that are committed to the fund’s mission and which have the capacity to reach its target group; directly to its target group (i.e. companies and producers); and in the case of sub-Saharan Africa, to real sector intermediaries. The fund supports sustainable operations in the sectors of agriculture, fishery (including aquaculture), forestry and tourism. Target beneficiaries are those that hold an eligible sustainability certification or those taking out a loan to make eligible sustainable investments in their operations. Operating together with each of the two sub-funds, are two development facilities that provide high-impact technical assistance to investment partners and final borrowers. An impact investment fund advised by Finance in Motion, the eco.business Fund was initiated by Germany’s KfW Development Bank and Conservation International with financial support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The sub-fund for sub-Saharan Africa was formally launched in 2020 with initial funding from BMZ. The sub-fund for Latin America and the Caribbean has received funding from the European Commission as well as from numerous other prestigious development finance institutions and institutional investors. The SANAD Fund for MSME, a fund advised by Finance in Motion, finances micro, small, and medium enterprises and low-income households in the Middle East and North Africa and selected countries of sub-Saharan Africa via qualified local lenders. SANAD thereby fosters economic development and job creation – including youth employment – agriculture, affordable housing, and innovations in finance and financial technologies. SANAD strives to meet these goals by providing debt and equity financing to its local partners. The SANAD Technical Assistance Facility (SANAD TAF), managed by Finance in Motion, multiplies the fund’s impact and outreach through capacity-building with partner institutions, developing financial infrastructures according to the principles of responsible finance and conducting much required research and development. The SANAD Entrepreneurship Academy, an initiative of the SANAD TAF, encompasses a range of programs to support business owners throughout SANAD’s target region. By working together with local organizations that drive incubation and acceleration projects, the Entrepreneurship Academy provides entrepreneurs with guidance, resources, mentoring, networking opportunities, the chance to receive financial backing, and other means necessary to turn good ideas into successful enterprises. SANAD’s investors include the KfW Development Bank, which initiated the fund; the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ); the European Union; Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO); OeEB, the Development Bank of Austria; Germany’s GLS Bank and GLS Treuhand; the Dutch development bank FMO; and Calvert Impact Capital.