Equity Group, ITC Partner to Boost Trade Finance and SME Growth in East Africa

The agreement, announced in Nairobi on 2 June 2026, is designed to close the gap between market access and financial readiness.

A pilot phase will run in Kenya through December 2026, with plans to expand into other East African markets from 2027. Equity Group, which serves 22.7 million customers across six East African markets with an asset base of US$15.7 billion, brings significant financial reach to the partnership, while ITC contributes trade expertise and an established network of capacity building programmes.

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ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton identified access to finance as the central obstacle facing SMEs in the region. “Those who actually have market access, say for example in the coffee, in the leather, or in the creative industries, do not have the ability to access that finance,” she said, adding that many SMEs are not yet bankable and that the partnership would help change that.

She also stressed that financing alone is not enough. “Access to finance is critical for small businesses, but it has to be matched with the right skills to use it effectively,” she said.

Equity Group MD and CEO Dr James Mwangi framed the partnership as an ambition to move MSMEs beyond passive participation in trade. “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,” he said.

Under the agreement, ITC will deliver training between June and September 2026 covering export logistics, price risk management, and specialty coffee quality and processing, building on the EU-funded MARKUP II programme.

Both organisations will also support businesses in meeting EU Deforestation Regulation requirements affecting coffee and leather exports into Europe