President Akinwumi A. Adesina on the need for Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks

On Monday, 17 May 2021, the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina hosted a meeting on the establishment of youth entrepreneurship investment banks entitled, “The roundtable on scaling up financing for youth and innovation in Africa.”

As part of his opening remarks, President Adesina calls on the development of sustainable jobs for Africa’s growth youth population – jobs that, he said, should be developed by the youth themselves.

Statistics show that less than 1/6 of the African youth whom enter the labor market each year find jobs – leaving many to develop their own businesses. And while the youth of Africa have vibrant business ideas spanning all industries, many involving technological innovations, most do not have the financial means to grow their businesses.

While the African Development Bank Group remains “committed to the youth,” as Adesina states in his opening remarks, more needs to be done to support them. “We must unleash the entrepreneurial capacity of the youth to create jobs,” he said.

Watch Dr. Adesina’s opening remarks to learn more about the SME financing gap in Africa, difficulties facing youth seeking to borrow from formal finance institutions and how youth-focused entrepreneurship banks could be a solution to this problem.

Click here to watch the full roundtable event.