High-Level Dialogue on PSD

Shaping the Future: Advancing Private Sector Development for a Resilient and Prosperous OACPS

On 13 and 14 February policymakers, entrepreneurs, trade associations, business support organisations, development partners, and other key stakeholders from across the OACPS regions gathered in Brussels for the High-Level Dialogue on Private Sector Development (PSD) organised by the OACPS Secretariat, in partnership with the European Union.

By highlighting success stories, challenges, and innovative solutions, the event provided a platform for stakeholders to exchange best practices and lessons learned. This knowledge-sharing process is essential for refining PSD strategies and fostering scalable, sustainable models of economic growth.

Panel discussions covered four core themes:

Improving the Business Environment & Investment Climate;
Supporting Women and Youth Entrepreneurship;
Strengthening OACPS Value Chains;
Increasing Access to Finance and Financial Inclusion.

The private sector is the engine of growth. Yet businesses in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific – especially MSMEs, women-led enterprises, and startups – still face significant barriers to finance, market access, and regulatory challenges. The High-Level Dialogue tackled these issues head-on. Drawing from Best Practices and Lessons Learned during the implementation of EDF 11 intra-ACP PSD Programmes, it offered concrete strategies to:

Break down regulatory barriers to business expansion and investment.
Make financing work for SMEs, youth, and women entrepreneurs.
Build resilient value chains to stop reliance on raw exports.
Leverage digital tools and AI for business transformation.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

Opening Remarks

“True progress is measured not by words, but by the opportunities we create, the partnerships we strengthen, and the lives we change through bold, inclusive private sector development.”
H.E. Mr. Sibusisiwe MNGOMEZULU, Chairman OACPS Committee of Ambassadors

The High-Level Dialogue underscored the need to empower the OACPS private sector: “This requires that our firms be capacitated not only to harness trade and investment opportunities, but also to become effective advocates for economic reforms required to advance sustainable economic transformation” said H.E. Ambassador Sibusisiwe MNGOMEZULU, Chairman, OACPS Committee of Ambassadors and Ambassador of The Kingdom of Eswatini to the EU.

Representing DG INTPA, Ms. Paz Velasco Velasquez urged governments, businesses, and development partners to foster an investment-friendly climate, support SMEs, and promote regional integration. Calling for actionable commitments, she emphasised that private sector is not just an engine of growth, it is a pillar of sustainable development.

“The future of Private Sector Development depends on collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity. The time for action is now.”
Ms. Paz Velasco Velasquez, DG INTPA, European Commission

Panel on Challenges & Drivers for Private Sector Development

This high-level panel focused on the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for advancing Private Sector Development (PSD) across OACPS regions. Each speaker provided insights on policy advocacy, investment facilitation, business linkages, and regional cooperation to foster sustainable economic transformation.

Key takeaways

Collaboration is Key: Public-private dialogue must be institutionalized to ensure inclusive, impactful economic policies.
Investment Must Be Inclusive: Small and medium enterprises need investment facilitation mechanisms to thrive.
Value-Added Production is the Future: the OACPS countries must move beyond exporting raw materials and build regional and global value chains.
Technology & AI Can Be Game-Changers: AI and digital tools offer opportunities for SMEs but require training and support.
Market Access is Essential: Business forums and advocacy bodies play a critical role in ensuring businesses can access new markets and trade opportunities.
Regulatory Environments Must Be Flexible: Policies should evolve with economic needs to create business-friendly conditions.

Thematic Session 1 : Improving the Business Environment & Investment Climate Climate

“We need governments to listen, adapt, and create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.”
Mr. Howard Politini, Chair, PIPSO

Key takeaways

The interventions of EU-funded intra-ACP programmes in the areas of Business Environment and Investment Climate address critical challenges in fostering economic growth and creating sustainable, inclusive ecosystems for private sector development. They include efforts to reform regulatory frameworks, streamline investment facilitation, enhance transparency, and strengthen institutional capacities.

Institutionalized public-private dialogue is an essential Best Practice. It ensures ownership and inclusivity. SMEs must have a seat at the table.
Tax incentives alone won’t cut it—investment climate reforms matter more.
Harmonized regulations across OACPS regions will accelerate cross-border trade.

Thematic Session 2 : Supporting Women and Young Entrepreneurship

“Access to finance is not just about loans—it’s about ensuring women and youth have the tools, knowledge, and networks to succeed.”
Ms. Yasmine Galloul, ICR Facility

The EU-funded Intra-ACP programmes have supported women and youth entrepreneurship in a myriad of ways. Some provided training and seed funding, as well as market linkages, partnership facilitation and bespoke support on access to finance. Others delivered skilled job training to young people, notably in regions afflicted by conflict. An intervention in Tuvalu developed a diagnostic tool to identify systemic barriers for women and youth entrepreneurs and inform revisions of the country’s Companies Act. And even programmes not explicitly focused on gender, such as AgriFi’s intervention supporting 30,000 farmers in Zambia or the EURIZ portfolio guarantee to a Tanzanian bank, integrated gender-sensitive methodologies to promote women’s leadership and participation in the first case and access to finance for women-led MSMEs in the second.

Key takeaways

A Best Practice is to have tailored instead of “one-size fits all” approaches – e.g. WE4A training adapted to the capacity building needs of specific business sectors and to stage of maturity of given firms.
Mentorship + Training + Capital = Business success.
Fintech solutions can bridge the financial gap for informal businesses.

Thematic Session 3 : Strengthening OACPS Value Chains

“ACP countries produce critical raw materials, yet much of the value benefits other nations. It’s time to change that.”
Mr. Grégoire Bellois, IGF

Within the framework of the 2017 OACPS New Approach on Support for the Development of Agriculture Value Chains, several EU-funded intra-ACP programmes have been designed to operationalize the transformation and modernization of OACPS Value Chains. These programmes aim to contribute to the development of green value chains, in addition to addressing the social and economic aspects of the EU’s sustainability Agenda. They also seek to empower actors along the OACPS agriculture value chains, specifically family farmers and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), with an emphasis on women and youth and on intra-value chain linkages.

Regarding mining resources, the OACPS Position Paper on Critical Raw Materials (CRMs) recognises that CRMs should be viewed as value chains.

Key takeaways

Programmes encompassing digital training tools to provide support and share knowledge promote inclusivity and impact.
A Best practice is for programmes to support intra-value chains linkages and local processing and branding to capture more economic value.
Sustainability and circular economy practices must be mainstream.
Public-private partnerships are key to scaling local industry.

Thematic Session 4: Increasing Access to Finance and Financial Inclusion

“Finance should not be a luxury for SMEs—it should be the foundation of a thriving private sector.”
Mr. Charles Kahuthu, EACCIA

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) requiring larger loans encounter significant financing challenges due to higher risks and limited guarantees, creating a persistent gap in credit access known as the “missing middle”. To address the missing middle, innovative Access to Finance and Financial Inclusion Solutions, as blended finance, have emerged as a critical solution. This approach uses public funds to reduce risks through technical assistance, first-loss mechanisms, and guarantees.

Key takeaways

Finance-related intra-ACP PSD programmes have shown that blended finance & credit guarantees for riskier sectors like agriculture & digital business work. But more attention must be given to the “missing middle”.
Lower equity ticket sizes make funding more accessible to SMEs.
Funding coupled with Technical Assistance yield positive results and must be multiplied.
Programmes that strengthen SME financial literacy and business management skills improve their bankability.

Closing Panel: Design of Future Private Sector Development-related actions

“For true economic transformation, the private sector must be heard. Policies designed in isolation will always fall short of real impact.”
Mr. Junior Lodge, Assistant Secretary-General, OACPS

This closing session consolidated insights and recommendations from the thematic discussions held over the course of the event. All speakers agreed that the High-Level Dialogue on Private Sector Development was not the finish line, but rather, a launchpad.

Final Recommendations and Next steps

Stronger Policy Reforms: Governments should streamline business regulations and improve financial access.
Regional Cooperation: Cross-border initiatives and harmonisation of regulatory framework should be promoted to facilitate trade and investment.
Private Sector Inclusion: mechanisms for structured dialogue between governments and businesses should be institutionalised.
Technology and Innovation: Adoption of digital tools and AI-driven solutions to enhance competitiveness.
Infrastructure Investment: Prioritization of clean energy, transport, and digital infrastructure to foster sustainable growth.
Access to Finance: Expansion of blended finance models to de-risk investments and encourage SME growth.
The strong links between OACPS and EU Member States must be mirrored among their respective entrepreneurs through enhanced trade and investment linkages between OACPS and EU businesses.