Driving Inclusive Entrepreneurship: YBI at the ANDE Pan Africa Conference 2025

Last week, Youth Business International (YBI) joined global leaders in entrepreneurship support at the ANDE Pan Africa Conference in Dakar, Senegal. Under the theme “Catalyzing the Future of Inclusive Entrepreneurship”, the conference brought together key stakeholders committed to fostering sustainable and equitable economic growth across the continent.

YBI co-facilitated two sessions at this year’s conference, reinforcing our commitment to advancing policies and solutions that enable young entrepreneurs to thrive.

Championing Policy Change for Inclusive and Female Entrepreneurship

YBI’s Membership Development Manager Freya Bottomley, alongside Adenike Adeyemi from our Nigerian member FATE Foundation, co-hosted the roundtable discussion: “From Policy to Practice: Bringing Meaningful Policy Changes to Drive Inclusive and Female Entrepreneurship Pan-Africa”.

The session explored key insights from YBI’s and the Global Entrepreneurship Network’s (GEN) Youth Entrepreneurship Policy Framework and FATE Foundation’s State of Entrepreneurship in Nigeria 2024 Report. Participants identified policy gaps, shared real-world challenges, and discussed how practical, actionable policy solutions could be applied locally to create more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Key takeaways included:

• The need for policy interventions that address financial access, business environment challenges, and capacity building for young and female entrepreneurs.
• Insights on how entrepreneur support organisations (ESOs) can advocate for effective policy shifts.
• Collaborative approaches to drive real change, ensuring young entrepreneurs can navigate and benefit from national and regional policies.

Unlocking Finance for Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs) through Digital Innovation

Access to finance remains one of the most significant barriers for Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs). YBI’s Head of Development and Programmes, Neelam Dave, joined our Kenyan member Somo and ADA Microfinance in facilitating the breakout session: “Inclusive Finance for SGBs: Harnessing the Power of Digital Tools”.

The session addressed how FinTech solutions and digital tools are transforming financial access for underserved entrepreneurs. Discussions centered on:

• How digital financial tools help SGBs build credit histories, making them more investable
• The role of partnerships between financial institutions, ESOs, and tech providers in scaling financial inclusion.
• The importance of financial literacy in ensuring entrepreneurs can effectively utilise digital financial solutions.

At YBI, we’ve seen the power of digital tools first-hand through initiatives like our Revolving Loan Fund with Somo, funded by Standard Chartered Foundation as part of Futuremakers by Standard Chartered. As part of this programme, young entrepreneurs use digital reporting to track financial and impact data, generating a weighted score to streamline financing decisions—making funding more accessible and transparent. These innovations are paving the way for a more inclusive financial landscape for young entrepreneurs in Africa and beyond.

As we reflect on our participation at the ANDE Pan Africa Conference 2025, one thing is clear: meaningful change happens when policy, finance, and innovation converge to support the next generation of entrepreneurs. YBI remains committed to leading these conversations and driving tangible impact for young business owners across the globe.

Want to learn more about our work? Explore YBI’s Youth Entrepreneurship Policy Framework here.