Why does TEI IYBA exist?
Africa faces a major employment challenge: by 2035, the working-age population is expected to grow by 450 million people, while only around 100 million jobs are projected to be created. Entrepreneurship is already widespread, with 1 in 5 working-age Africans being an entrepreneur. However, MSMEs face persistent barriers, including:
• Limited access to finance
• Insufficient mentoring and technical support
• Complex regulatory environments
• Gender and age-based inequalities
TEI IYBA connects Africa and Europe to strengthen African entrepreneurial ecosystem and expand access to finance for smaller businesses.
By covering the full entrepreneurial continuum, from pre-seed to Series B, with blended finance instruments and technical assistance that reduce risk for investors and accompany entrepreneurs and their ecosystems at every stage of growth.
What is TEI IYBA?
The Team Europe Initiative Investing in Young Businesses in Africa (TEI IYBA) is a Global Gateway flagship backed by the European Union, 13 EU Member States, development finance institutions, public and private investors.
It is a €4.6 billion umbrella initiative covering 180+ programmes in over 20 countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, including 8 co-funded regional programmes (€312M) and 7 EFSD+ financial guarantees (€733M).
It supports entrepreneurial ecosystems, early-stage businesses, and MSMEs across Sub-Saharan Africa through financial and technical assistance, from early development to investment readiness, while reducing risk and mobilising catalytic capital. Ultimately, contributing to the creation of sustainable jobs for Africa’s future.
The initiative also serves as a platform for public–private engagement on entrepreneurship and access to finance, and as a hub for coordinating regional programmes and EFSD+ guarantees.
Our IYBA-SEED project is part of the TEI IYBA, and supporting entrepreneurial ecosystem development across 5 countries through a long-term, holistic approch to strengthening organisations that help businesses grow, with a special emphasis on improving their support to women and young entrepreneurs.
Discover TEI IYBA official webpage
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From strengthening ESOs to preparing African green businesses for regional expansion Across Africa, green startups and SMEs are developing innovative solutions in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, waste management, water, clean technologies and other emerging green sectors.Benin-Togo Exchange Visit: Strengthening Regional Entrepreneurship Cooperation
From May 18 to 22, 2026, the IYBA-SEED Benin and IYBA-SEED Togo teams invited a delegation of actors from Benin's entrepreneurial ecosystem to take part in an exchange visit between Kara and Lomé, Togo.
