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The African Development Bank Group has approved a $1 million grant to help small businesses in Libya get finance and support services. The money comes from the Bank’s Middle-Income Country Technical Assistance Fund. It will pay for the Private Sector Development and Entrepreneurship Enhancement project, with a focus on women and young people. Libyan authorities will run the project together with Expertise France.
The project responds to Libya’s need to move beyond oil and gas and create more jobs and business opportunities. It also targets limited financing options, gaps in business skills, scattered support services and weak coordination between institutions. It builds on the Bank’s existing support for youth entrepreneurship in Libya.
“Entrepreneurs need practical business skills, financial services that respond to their needs and institutions that support their growth. By working with Libyan partners on these priorities together, this project aims to expand opportunities for women and young people to build viable businesses and contribute to a more diversified economy,” said Malinne Blomberg, Deputy Director General for North Africa and Country Manager for Libya, African Development Bank.
The African Development Bank Group is a multilateral development finance institution that supports economic development across Africa.
Expertise France, which is working with the Libyan authorities on the project, is a French public agency for technical cooperation. The project fits the Bank’s Libya Country Brief 2025 to 2028, which focuses on creating the conditions for reconstruction and economic diversification through stronger governance and institutions.
The grant will fund training, new financial products, and support for businesses:
- It will train 200 entrepreneurs in areas like business planning, financial literacy, project management, pricing, and marketing, with 40% of participants being women and 50% young people.
- To increase access to finance, 50 banking professionals will be trained in Islamic finance and lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), in collaboration with four financial institutions and service providers. The project will also create microfinance products designed for women and youth.
- The project will help update Libya’s Private Sector Development Roadmap and improve coordination among institutions that support MSMEs. At least five national entities will receive assistance to enhance monitoring, reporting, and integration of gender and youth issues into their work.
- The Libya Credit Information Center will get staff training and system upgrades to enhance lending information.
- Additionally, the project will promote climate-smart business practices and support financial institutions in incorporating climate considerations into their services.
The announcement comes a few days after Kenya’s Family Bank Limited secured a $10 million trade finance line of credit from the African Development Bank.
In September, the Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group approved a $34 million loan to Seychelles to strengthen economic resilience, improve public services, expand private sector opportunities, and advance the country’s transition towards greener, more inclusive growth.
