YES-FI programme

Helping young entrepreneurs grow their business

Since 2020, the YES-FI (Young Entrepreneurs Sustainable Financing Initiative) programme has been supporting small and medium-sized enterprises created by young people who need to finance their next phase of growth. 

The initiative grants loans ranging from €5,000 to €50,000 to entrepreneurs in various African and Central American countries. 

This innovative solution is tailored to the specific needs of this target group:

• It addresses the financing needs of entrepreneurs known as the “missing middle”, i.e. requests for financing that are too large for microfinance institutions and too small to be considered by commercial banks and impact investors.
• It offers greater flexibility when it comes to repaying the debt: the monthly instalments are not fixed but calculated on the basis of the company’s monthly revenue. 
• In addition, partner incubators provide entrepreneurs with non-financial support to strengthen their management skills, make them investment-ready and improve their market access. The costs of this support are partially covered by the repayment of the loan.

In this way, the scheme enables the young entrepreneurs to create a financing track record with local financial institutions, which can then take on subsequent financing cycles at lower risk and without ADA’s support.

Learn more about YES-FI partners  

The YES-FI programme is financed by Generali Investments Luxembourg.