SEED Burkina Faso Dialogue Forum 2017

Eco-inclusive enterprises such as Voute Nubienne, Coopérative Sahel Vert, and Jardin Green Hope, are significantly contributing to job creation, youth and women empowerment, and managing natural resources sustainably in Burkina Faso.

Such enterprises need to be supported and promoted to further contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals, and this was the objective of the SEED Burkina Faso Dialogue Forum. Organised by SEED, with support from local partners, Afrik Eveil and La Fabrique, the event took place on 20th September 2017 at Ramada Pearl Hotel, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

It brought together about 50 key stakeholders including thriving and aspiring eco-inclusive entrepreneurs, policy and civil society groups who jointly explored different approaches and partnerships essential for the promotion and replication of eco-inclusive business models; to successfully contribute to green growth and sustainable development in Burkina Faso.

The event was graced by Becquet Polycarpe Bationo from Direction Générale de l'Economie Verte et du Changement Climatique and Kalifa Romuald Dao, from Fonds Burkinabé de Développement Économique et Social, who gave keynote words.

Both speakers reiterated their beliefs that eco-inclusive enterprises have a key role in transitioning Burkina Faso’s economy to a green one, from bottom-up.

Eco-inclusive Enterprise Dialogues at Café du Sahel

A highlight of the event was Café du Sahel, an interactive session which provided participants the opportunity to engage each other on the challenges, needs and potential support mechanisms for eco-inclusive enterprises in Burkina Faso.  Past and current eco-inclusive SEED Award Winners: Voute Nubienne, Jardin Green Hope, TECOCARRE and Coopérative Sahel Vert, and other enterprises such as FASO ECO presented their solutions and exhibited samples of their products.

The afternoon session of the event featured business development services (BDS) providers who shared their experiences and learnings on tools and methodologies for supporting small and medium scale enterprises in Burkina Faso. They also explored workable funding models for their service portfolios.

There are no shortages of eco-inclusive businesses in Burkina Faso, and the SEED Burkina Faso Dialogue Forum successfully offered such enterprises, key support organizations, policy, and players in the eco-inclusive ecosystem a unique platform on which they shared experiences and explored future possibilities for collaboration, in scaling and replicating impacts in Burkina Faso and beyond. So the next time you go to a Café du Sahel, ask for a Burkinabe eco-inclusive product, there might be one!

The SEED Burkina Faso Dialogue Forum 2017Summary Report is available here.