Bridging the financing gap for African SMEs
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According to the World Bank, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play vital roles in economies worldwide. Some 90 percent of businesses are SMEs, and SMEs are 50 percent of the world’s employers. In Africa, the number is even higher, with SMEs providing 80 percent of its jobs. Yet World Bank figures show that SMEs in Africa and the Global South are far less likely to obtain bank loans, credit, or investment than large firms – suffering from a gaping financing gap.
Mélanie Keïta is the CEO and co-founder of Melanin Kapital, a pan-African impact investment banking platform with offices in Kenya, France, and Germany. In episode #21 of Campus 10178, the ESMT Berlin podcast, Keïta speaks on the efforts to connect European credit and capital with entrepreneurs in Africa. The company’s mission is to build pathways between SMEs and financial institutions, educating and supporting both to thus lower barriers to financing and improve financial performance and chances for SME business success in Africa.
“It is our generation’s burden – but also its responsibility – to be able to find a way to change the way economies work, so that we can be able to stay on this planet longer and provide to our children what we've been able to enjoy.
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