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November 2019 Ivory Coast
As founding donor of JA Côte d’Ivoire, Tomorrow Foundation took part to the official launch of JA Cote d’Ivoire and the Futurepreneurship Program in partnership with JA Africa on November 21st, 2019 in Abidjan. The ceremony gathered personalities including the Ivorian Minister of Youth Promotion and Employment Mr. Mamadou Touré, Mrs Chantal Pouaty representing Ivory Coast’s First Lady, JA Africa’s President Mrs Elisabeth Bintliff, and representatives of the US Embassy and the national start-up incubator “DreamFactory”. The event provided also the opportunity to our founder to have individual meetings with various actors of local economy such as the Managing Director of Ivory Coast Agency for Small and Middle Enterprises.
After almost 3 years of planning and an incredible work from all the staff of JA Africa and Ivory Coast authorities, JA Cote d’Ivoire is now an official member of JA Worldwide network and enters in a more operational phase. It becomes the 15th JA office of the continent
It was important for the Foundation to support the work of JA in Ivory Coast and especially entrepreneurship. Indeed, Ivory Coast is a regional economic hub, a financial and trading centre. The economy is booming and is among the fastest growing in Africa. The country had an economic growth of 7% these last years and is expected to reach the same in 2019. The government continues to issue pro-business reforms and launched a Youth National Policy Program. It is easier to start a company or getting loans. On September 23rd the Standard Chartered bank ranked the country top of its list of 20 countries that have the most potential to trade.
The country economy is growing quickly, performs well and attracts more and more investments. This is a great momentum for the youth. However, many young people have difficulties to access jobs in growth sectors for various reasons such as lack of proper skills and training, high demand, lack of transparency or efficiency of hiring channels… As a default choice, many of them choose entrepreneurship. Nevertheless, most of them remain self-employed, earning barely enough to survive, doing their small business alone, not hiring anyone, not developing their activity.
In this context, as a multi-year program aiming at building entrepreneurial skills among young African students to empower them and broaden their horizons, the Futurepreneurship Program developed by JA Africa and supported by the Foundation makes perfect sense. It gives a great opportunity to have a first insight into the management of a company and lay the foundation to commit further. It is the responsibility of public institutions, international organizations, educational world, business owners, relatives to guide them and provide them the necessary tools at every stage of professional development.
Tomorrow Foundation strongly believes in the learning by doing principle, the resourcefulness of young African people and the need for Africa to have its own leaders in every field. African youth is strong, ambitious and open to the world. They are the solution to change the continent by creating jobs, generating wealth for themselves, for others, reinforcing local communities and becoming models for the whole world.
We wish all the best and every success to the new team of Assaita Sangaré, Executive Director of JA Côte d’Ivoire and ensure them of our full support.
Presse releases:
https://news.abidjan.net/h/666177.html
https://aip.ci/les-activites-de-junior-achievement-cote-divoire-lancees-a-abidjan/
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