ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Entrepreneurial Support
Africa Centre’s Entrepreneurial Support initiatives aim at creating opportunity for building a larger business community in Alberta through leading a full-frontal assault on the systematic barriers that limit the prospects for aspiring Black entrepreneurs.
Vision
Our vision is large: A community where Black entrepreneurs and small business owners are fully integrated and have the same opportunities to realize their dreams.
Strategy
Our strategy is to use our local, regional and national networks to build a sustainable infrastructure that will work with established and aspiring Black entrepreneurs to:
Identify gaps in education, credentialing and personal networks.
Provide relevant workshops, training and education, provide advice, improve access to business development supports, organize formal mentoring, and help navigate social barriers to obtaining capital and other supports.
Foster the development of new sources of funding for Black entrepreneurs.
We believe in the empowerment of Black individuals, and through close collaboration with different levels of government and other Black-led organizations, Africa Centre intends on acting as a catalyst for economic security, equal representation and opportunity in Alberta. Our intention is to support newcomers in addressing language barriers, securing recognition for hard-earned but often unrecognized education and experience, and learning the formal and informal rules of Canadian small business culture.
We intend on positioning Albertans with skills to:
overcome prejudicial attitudes towards their cultures of origin and race,
limited linkages and knowledge of the business sector,
the struggle of being unmatched with compassionate and understanding mentors and advisors,
fettered access to capital,
and the unmet promise of enjoying full and equal access to Canadian economic life.
Through programming and support, our goal is to put Black entrepreneurs in a better position to develop their businesses and to obtain capital. A strong economy is a diverse one, and in time we believe the success Black entrepreneurs achieve will have a positive effect in shaping the wider business environment and attitudes towards our community.
Become part of Africa Centre’s Entrepreneurship Community.
Africa Centre’s Entrepreneurship Empowerment program seeks to build a sustainable ecosystem in which Black entrepreneurs and people of African descent can thrive. The program will seek to do the following:
Stimulate and support business creation, scaling and expansion.
Develop and deliver programs for business skills development.
Provide relevant and timely business services to entrepreneurs.
Provide relevant and timely business services to entrepreneurs.
Our Partners & Funders
