he Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Agri-Food Network (IAFN) are pleased to launch an Accelerator Mentoring Pilot Programme to support women entrepreneurs in tackling the main challenges and constraints they face in their businesses.

Objective:

The aim of the Mentoring Accelerator Programme is to offer women entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa one-to-one mentoring with a panel of experts who are leading women entrepreneurs from around the world, using a structure through which the participants can interact with and learn from the panel of experts, as well as providing them with access to the knowledge and tools they need to grow their companies and adapt to a constantly changing market.

Programme components

Specifically, the programme aims to provide selected women entrepreneurs:

• A one-to-one mentoring / coaching opportunity;
• A series of tailor-made trainings to improve hard skills from a selection of available options;
• Knowledge exchange, networking and peer learning opportunities;
• Access/links to tools developed by FAO, IAFN and other institutions.

A virtual graduation ceremony will take place at the end of the programme, involving FAO and IAFN management, and participants will be honoured with certificates.

Eligibility Criteria

• Businesswomen who lead and own small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in the agri-food sector in the sub-Saharan African region.
• The participants will be selected by a panel of FAO and IAFN experts and the programme's mentors.
• Note that they are currently only accepting applications from SMEs operating in Africa.

Deadline: 29 August

Read more information here