Press releases

ITC and Expertise France deepen cooperation to support SMEs and entrepreneurs in developing countries

6 July 2017
ITC News

(Paris and Geneva) The International Trade Centre (ITC) and Expertise France have signed a letter of intent to reinforce their collaborative work on providing trade-related technical assistance for developing countries and least developed countries (LDCs).

The two organizations started working together in 2016 on a project aimed at strengthening Libya’s economic recovery through a training program for young entrepreneurs. Despite the difficult situation on the ground, the results have been more than encouraging: the Libyan Trade Academy, which draws on the distance education expertise of ITC’s SME Trade Academy, has already trained 300 young Libyan entrepreneurs, 20% of whom were young women, on international trade issues.

According to Arancha González, the Executive Director of ITC, “Expertise France and ITC have a lot in common, from size and geographic scope to the kinds of institutional and SME partners we work with. But while Expertise France concentrates on economic issues, ITC’s focus is on development - it is this specialization that makes our organizations complementary”.

Sébastien Mosneron Dupin, CEO of Expertise France, said “We are pleased to have been able to demonstrate together that online training is a viable option to raise awareness of entrepreneurship among young Libyans. While e-learning continues to gain momentum globally, it is particularly valuable in difficult local conditions such as those in Libya. This is just one example of what we can achieve together.”

This initiative is part of a four-year development programme, ‘Support for Libya for Economic integration, diversification and sustainable employment’(SLEIDSE), financed by the European Union and set up by Expertise France to support entrepreneurs with an emphasis on youth and women. It will also supply substantial aid to trade and investment support institutions such as Libya Enterprise.

The new basis for cooperation between ITC, a multilateral organization, and Enterprise France, promises new opportunities for joint work that benefits all stakeholders.

Notes for the editor

Expertise France is the French agency for international technical cooperation. It contributes to sustainable development based on solidarity and inclusion by optimising the public policies of partner countries. Expertise France develops and enacts cooperation projects aimed at skill transfer between professionals.

The agency also develops integrated offers, combining public and private expertise to respond to the needs of partner countries. www.expertisefrance.fr


ITC is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations.
ITC assists small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition economies to become more competitive in global markets, thereby contributing to sustainable economic development within the frameworks of the Aid-for-Trade agenda and the United Nations’ Global Goals for Sustainable Development. www.intracen.org Follow ITC on Twitter: @ITCnews @SMEtradeAcademy


For more information, please contact:

Raphaël Dard,
Responsable en charge du programme E-learning, ITC
dard [at] intracen.org (dard[at]intracen[dot]org)
+41 78 888 9768

Nessrin Gaddah,
Chargée de communication, SLEIDSE
nessrin.gaddah [at] gmail.com (nessrin[dot]gaddah[at]gmail[dot]com)
+218 928 002 017