The green business development component focuses specifically on supporting micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in greening their business ventures, with an emphasis on SWITCH Africa Green’s five thematic cross-cutting areas, namely energy efficiency, labelling and standards, water efficiency, eco-innovation and sustainable trade. This component is implemented by the European Union delegation in each country, guided by a national technical coordination committee.
The green business development component consists primarily of grants awarded following a call for proposals for the provision of services that will enable MSMEs to start or develop a green business or switch over to more sustainable consumption and production practices. The call for proposals is open to business intermediaries such as business and consumer organizations, chambers of commerce, non-governmental and community-based organizations, research and development organizations and labour organizations. Care is taken to distribute the grants among the participating countries in a balanced manner.
Projects grants cover activities such as:
Development and provision of technical advisory services on issues related to eco-innovation and sustainable consumption and production, such as resource efficiency, product life cycles, eco-labelling, sustainability reporting, marketing and trade opportunities;
Development and provision of technical advisory services on business management, including financial management;
Support for access to finance, including development of bankable projects and engagement with financial institutions;
- Support for business-to-business dialogue, including networking among sector value chain actors from producers to consumers, fostering of market links between producers, retailers and buyers (including public buyers and international entities), and matchmaking to expand supply and demand for resource-efficient, sustainable products, including by facilitating access to and use of consumer information tools such as eco-labelling and certification;
- Development of media campaigns addressing consumers, policymakers and the private sector to increase global awareness of sustainable consumption and production issues;
- Analysis/appraisal and diagnostic studies of specific market opportunities for green businesses and for sustainable consumption and production;
- Assessments and audits of specific production and trade processes.
