Tunis, Tunisia, January 14, 2020— IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is signing memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with two Tunisian start-up accelerators today to help unlock the potential of innovative entrepreneurship in the country, with a focus on women-led start-ups and creating jobs for young people.
IFC signed the MoUs with Flat6Labs Tunisia, which operates an accelerator program and early-stage investment platform, and Impact Partner Tunisia, which supports young start-ups and small medium enterprises (SME) especially those with a strong social impact, creating sustainable jobs for women and young people.
These agreements will help further build the capacity of both accelerators by expanding the scale and increasing the number of entrepreneurs being supported, and by fostering expansion to include more women and more entrepreneurs outside the capital/economic cities.
Yehia Houry, Managing Director at Flat6Labs, said: "Our partnership is a natural result of the collaboration that we have started with IFC. It is perfectly in line with our strategy aimed at multiplying the entrepreneurial dynamic in Tunisia. Our objective is not only to support start-ups but also to initiate a new entrepreneurial breath with women and young people from all regions of Tunisia.”
Leila Charfi, President of Impact Partner Tunisia said: “Through programs, we support start-ups and emerging SMEs with high job creation potential, particularly for women and young people. This partnership with IFC allows us to strengthen the support of these young companies and help them develop and create a lasting impact.”
The MoUs are being signed as part of the Accelerate4Youth Program, supported with funds from Germany, Norway and the Netherlands. The program forms part of IFC’s strategy to help boost economic growth in Tunisia through private sector-led job creation and by strengthening the country’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, while promoting social inclusion through increased opportunities for young men and women.
Sérgio Pimenta, IFC Vice President for the Middle East and Africa said: “The early stage is often the most crucial for building and sustaining healthy entrepreneurship, which is vital for creating quality jobs and developing innovative solutions in emerging markets. Today’s agreements will not only help Flat6Labs and Impact Partner Tunisia build capacity, but will ultimately help the start-ups, who will benefit from improved services, mentorship and, potentially, grants.”
The agreements follow a $1 million investment by IFC in September in the Anava Seed Fund, an accelerator and early stage fund managed by Flat6Labs Tunisia, to help support tech entrepreneurs and women entrepreneurs, in particular.
About IFC
IFC—a sister organization of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities where they are needed most. In fiscal year 2019, we delivered more than $19 billion in long-term financing for developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org .
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About Flat6Labs Tunisia:
Since the launch of the initiative in 2016 between the Tunisian American Enterprise Fund (TAEF), Meninx Holding and BIAT, Flat6Labs has supported 28 innovative start ups in Tunisia. The program welcomes start ups working in various sectors geared towards innovation and the knowledge economy, including Education, Energy, Transport, FinTech, GreenTech, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), as well as Electronics and Industrial Solutions. The program is backed by Anava Seed Fund and offers several investment tickets up to 1 Million Dinars. Flat6Labs supports the next wave of entrepreneurs developing innovative solutions and applications. We are proposing a unique program tailored to the national context and contributing to the growth of the Tunisian entrepreneurial ecosystem. For more information, visit www.flat6labstunis.com .
About Impact Partner
Impact Partner is a support and funding organization for start ups and SMEs with high job creation potential. Impact Partner has developed (since 2014, under the name of Yunus Social Business Tunisia) acceleration programs and three financing offers: donations, interest-free loans for projects in the start-up phase, and an investment in "equity or quasi-equity”for companies in the development phase through an impact investing fund co-created with UGFS-NA. This strategy aims to boost the creation of long-term jobs in Tunisia, especially for women and young people, and to develop the knowledge economy. Impact Partner has also developed an impact measurement and certification methodology (more info at https://imsystem.co/ ).
Impact Partner is a member of Yunus Social Business Global Initiatives (YSB) co-founded by Pr Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize winner, an organization supporting social entrepreneurship through social business support and funding programs. For more information, please visit: https://www.impactpartner.co/
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