Entrepreneurial Solutions Partners (ESP) has launched the Komeza program, with Equity Bank Rwanda PLC as the financing partner, to provide financial support and technical assistance to 120 small, medium-size enterprises within Rwanda’s tourism and hospitality sector. Kigali, Rwanda — Today, Entrepreneurial Solutions Partners (ESP), in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation and Equity Bank Rwanda PLC, announced the creation of a COVID-19 Recovery and Resilience program, to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Tourism and Hospitality sector.
The Komeza program, with Equity Bank Rwanda PLC as the financing partner, will provide the right combination of financial support and technical assistance to 120 SMEs, at all stages of maturity, plus their value chains, within the Tourism and Hospitality sector. The program has been established through a commitment of US$2.5 million from the MasterCard Foundation COVID-19 Recovery and Resilience Program.
While the Government of Rwanda continues to do the important work of managing the public health crisis, it is clear that the economic and social impact will be far reaching. In addition, the Government of Rwanda re-opened tourism activities across the country, promoting domestic tourism as global travel restarts with commercial flights expected to resume on 1 st August.
Rwanda Development Board’s Chief Tourism Officer, Belise Kariza said, “Rwanda’s tourism industry is adapting to create a safe environment for travelers and operators, in order to thrive in these unprecedented times. We are working with the health authorities to ensure all tourism activities resume seamlessly. The Government of Rwanda is committed to supporting private sector growth in the middle to long term.”
Over the next year, the Komeza program will provide technical assistance and financing of up to US$50,000 per SME with support from Equity Bank Rwanda PLC. Incubation support will be provided to 60 start-ups through ESP’s Tourism Inc program and 50 established SMEs will benefit from the Komeza accelerator program. A further 10 businesses will be selected for the program through a special innovation stream that will focus on building and financing growth plans to increase their resilience and mitigate the impact of the crisis. The SMEs and start-ups participating in the Komeza program will receive technical assistance, access to grants, and guidance on debt restructuring.
“At ESP, our programs are built to deploy the right mix of technical tools and financing to support entrepreneurs on their journey to sustainability. We understand the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and have designed the Komeza program to […]
