International Trade Centre (ITC) Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton and Equity Group Managing Director and CEO James Mwangi during the signing of a memorandum of understanding between ITC and Equity Group Holdings PLC to advance inclusive and commercially sustainable economic development across East Africa, beginning with Kenya/ HANDOUTThe International Trade Centre (ITC) and Equity Group Holdings Plc have signed a partnership agreement aimed at expanding access to finance, trade expertise and market opportunities for businesses in the coffee, leather and creative industries across East Africa.
The memorandum of understanding, signed on Tuesday, will initially be implemented in Kenya through a pilot programme running until December 2026 before expanding to other East African markets from 2027.
The agreement brings together ITC’s trade development programmes and Equity Group’s regional financial services network, with the partners targeting sectors they say have strong potential for growth and value addition.
ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton said the partnership seeks to address both financing and business development needs facing small enterprises.
“We know that access to finance is critical for small businesses – but it has to be matched with the right skills to use it effectively,” she said.
"That’s why we’re partnering with Equity Bank – to ensure small businesses across East Africa can tap both financing and trade expertise to move up the value chain and compete in global markets, from leather to the creative industries.”
Equity Group Managing Director and CEO James Mwangi said the collaboration would combine financing, trade intelligence and market access support to help businesses expand.
“This partnership reflects our shared commitment to unlocking the immense potential within Africa’s value chains by connecting entrepreneurs, producers and creatives to regional and global markets,” Mwangi said.
He emphasised that through our Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan, they are intentionally investing in sectors that create jobs, expand exports and drive inclusive economic transformation.
“By combining access to finance, trade intelligence, capacity building and market linkages, we are building an ecosystem that enables MSMEs in coffee, leather and the creative economy to scale sustainably and compete globally,” he added.
“Our ambition is to ensure that MSMEs are not merely participants in trade, but competitive actors capable of shaping global markets through quality, scale and innovation.”
In the coffee sector, the partnership will build on the European Union-funded Market Access Upgrade Programme (MARKUP) II in the East African Community.
ITC will provide training between June and September 2026 on export logistics, specialty coffee processing, quality improvement and price risk management.
The two organisations will also support coffee and leather businesses to comply with the European Union Deforestation Regulation, which affects exports entering the European market.
In the leather industry, the partnership will contribute to the midterm review of the East African Community Leather and Leather Products Strategy 2020–2030.
Planned activities include product design coaching for footwear businesses, support for standards harmonisation across EAC member states and assistance in accessing e-commerce platforms.
The creative industries component will cover sectors including music, film, gaming, digital media, fashion, crafts and performing arts.
Activities will begin with market assessments and sector mapping before the rollout of business development support, market access programmes and financing solutions.
Businesses participating in the programme will also gain access to ITC’s trade market intelligence tools and the SME Trade Academy, the organisation’s online learning platform for small enterprises.
Equity Group operates banking subsidiaries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The partnership is expected to serve as a pilot model for wider implementation across the region.
