Triift Africa Programs
Mary* sells pap in Bwari, Abuja. And after our class on identifying market needs and validating your idea, she decided to start adding peanuts to her already-made pap. This was because most of the people who passed by her stall were young kids going to school.
Nnenna* hawks small chops and snacks. And after the session on digital marketing, she decided to share about her business on her Whatsapp story and Facebook where she got two orders to cater for an event.
We met Mary, Nnenna and 45 other grassroots entrepreneurs who were participants of the just concluded Hardball Foundation Decent Work Initiative, which took place last month in which Triift Africa won the bid as a training partner.
The training was initiated to:
● Raise sustainable businesses and business people.
● Educate on best business practices and ensure local entrepreneurs use tools that make their businesses sustainable.
● Promote small businesses and local industries.
● Proffer innovative solutions for the challenges facing local businesses.
According to PWC, in Nigeria, SMEs contribute 48% of the national GDP and account for 96% of businesses, and 84% of employment. However, lack of training contributes to a leading cause of business failures- CSIS. And that is why training like this is important to us at Triift Africa.
Training grassroots entrepreneurs means they can contribute more than they are currently contributing in an effective and sustainable manner. And research by Nairametrices also noted that 47% of the 100 highest scorers on the SME Performance Index provided training for employees at least quarterly.
So, over two weeks, we taught business as plainly as possible to business owners in Bwari. And some topics we covered included a step-by-step approach to identifying market needs and creating a solution that brings profit, how to use Meta for Business tools to sell, bookkeeping and financial management, how to pitch, and how to write a business plan.
Our action-based learning model encouraged participation through group work, assignments, and class presentations.
Based on our assessment of the participant’s needs, we also offered business clinics. These were 1–1 advisory sessions that enabled us to better assess the participants, their business, and current challenges to provide strategic solutions and recommendations for their growth. It also helped us ensure that all the participants had a complete understanding and ability to apply the key lessons taught during the training.
After two weeks of training, Hardball Foundation gave a grant of 1 million Naira to 5 participants. These beneficiaries will also get more in-depth support from Triift Africa over a 6-month period. They also got FREE Business registration with SMEDAN and gift items from Molfix.
Based on the feedback received, the training provided a useful guide to the participants on how to start and grow profitable and sustainable businesses. And we are glad for our contribution to it.
Providing training to grassroots entrepreneurs is right at the core of what we do at Triift Africa, and we look forward to more collaborations that make it possible to support entrepreneurs in Africa, in both rural and urban areas.
If you would like to work with us, please send an email to hello@triiftafrica.com
