20X Small Business Acceleration Programme

The focus of the programme is to multiply impact by building capacity of small business support practitioners, the use of digital solutions by their small business clients, & the promotion of social inclusion & job creation, thus reaching 10s of practitioners,  100s small businesses & securing 1000s of jobs…

This 20X Small Business Acceleration Programme is based on an intake of cohorts of 20 practitioners who work with over 100 entrepreneurs, securing 500 jobs. Participating practitioners may include advisors, mentors, coaches, facilitators, programme managers, incubation officers & others involved in serving the growth needs of small businesses.

An example of applying the 20X approach is the Township Entrepreneur Support Organisation Training Programme, developed & implemented for the African Development Bank & the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

The focus of the programme is building capacity of small business support practitioners, the use of digital solutions by their small business clients, & the promotion of social inclusion & job creation. In addition, it is designed to contribute to the strengthening of a supportive ecosystem & the promotion of collaboration between various entrepreneurship support ecosystem contributors.

This approach is ideal for accelerating growth of township-based, women-led, youth-owned & purpose-driven small businesses; & the core structure of the programme allows for sufficient flexibility to adjust its delivery to address the specific needs of a target audience, identified in conjunction with the programme sponsors & other stakeholders.

This programme may form the foundation for an ongoing relationship with the cohort of 20 practitioners & 100 entrepreneurs, which often includes offering them access to funding for expansion & digital projects, as well as use of the DigiBiz Network for facilitated peer support.