{
  "id": 9713902,
  "title": "International Trade Centre and Access Bank partner to boost small business growth across 14 African countries",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/25/international-trade-centre-and-access-bank-partner-to-boost-small",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-25T00:25:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Joy Business",
    "slug": "joy-business",
    "url": "https://www.myjoyonline.com/international-trade-centre-and-access-bank-partner-to-boost-small-business-growth-across-14-african-countries/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Access Bank have joined forces to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across 14 African countries access financing, markets, and skills training. The partnership aims to tackle the biggest barrier to trade faced by African small businesses: securing finance. The program will begin with a pilot in Ghana, focusing on job creation, access to finance for women- and youth-owned businesses, SME sustainability, capacity building, and market access.\n\nThe five-year collaboration, outlined in a memorandum of understanding signed during the UN General Assembly in New York, combines ITC's expertise and technical skills with Access Bank's extensive reach across Africa. The initiative will initially target Ghana, prioritizing women-led enterprises, and will leverage ITC's digital learning tools and training programs in coordination with Access Bank staff. The partnership aims to scale up its efforts to include more countries and advanced training on sustainability standards and digital marketplace tools from 2027 onwards.\n\nAccess Bank, with a network of over 700 branches across 25 African countries and more than 63 million customers, recognizes that finance alone is insufficient for SME growth. The bank's commitment to inclusive, sustainable ecosystem banking drives this partnership, aiming to equip African SMEs with the necessary tools and connections to thrive. Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director of the International Trade Centre, emphasized the critical role of access to finance in driving trade across the continent. Seyi Kumapayi, Executive Director of Access Bank's African subsidiaries, highlighted that a combination of capital, market access, and trade-ready skills is essential for SMEs to scale.",
  "summary": "The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Access Africa Office, the coordinating office for the African subsidiaries of Access Bank Plc, one of Africa's leading pan-African financial institutions",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}