Accenture continues ongoing consulting support of Canada-based charity’s mission NEW YORK CITY and MONTREAL, Canada; August 7, 2007 – Accenture(a) (NYSE: ACN) and the Enablis Entrepreneurial Network today announced a US$1.5 million grant from the Accenture Foundations. The grant will support Enablis’ efforts to help entrepreneurs in Africa build and scale strong, sustainable businesses – ultimately, extending the organization’s initial success in South Africa to countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
In addition to the grant from the Accenture Foundations, Accenture will continue to provide Enablis with consulting services, as it has done since the organization’s inception. These have ranged from advisory services, including developing Enablis’ business strategy, to hands-on support for the pilot launch and rollout. Most recently, the company developed the framework, feasibility study and action plan for Enablis’ expansion into sub-Saharan Africa. Additionally, Accenture Development Partnerships, a not-for-profit group dedicated to providing support to the international development community, developed Enablis’ business plan for East Africa. Enablis, a not-for-profit, public-private partnership, operates at the grass-roots level and is dedicated to delivering to its member entrepreneurs all the networking, learning, mentoring and coaching that are relevant to them and will contribute to their sustainability. Developed from a concept generated through the G8’s Digital Opportunities Task Force, the organization also provides its 300+ members with finance, to help ensure success. This is particularly important for businesses that fall between the thresholds for micro-credit and venture capital.
An independent survey of Enablis members, released in January 2007, found that for each entrepreneur assisted by the organization, four new jobs on average have been created in industries that include IT telecom, tourism, services, agri-business and transportation, among others. “We’ve found that giving a combination of grants and our time and skills to not-for-profit organizations is the optimal way to effect change, and Enablis is a perfect example of the success of that model,” said Jill Huntley, director of Corporate Citizenship at Accenture. “The organization is succeeding at a rapid pace and is proving that we can use entrepreneurship to strengthen local economies through job creation, skills development and sustainable business growth.”
Accenture, one of Enablis’ Global Partners, was a founder of the organization and holds seats on the board of directors of Enablis Global, the Enablis South Africa and the Enablis East Africa.
“This is the largest single private-sector gift received by Enablis to date,” said Charles Sirois, Enablis Founder and Global Chairman. Separately, the Government of Canada, though Canada Fund for Africa, contributed Can$10 million to support Enablis. “Private sector development and entrepreneurship have been recognized as the engine of economic growth in developing countries," continues Sirois. "However, entrepreneurship has historically been impeded by lack of capacity and access to financing. Economies are significantly impacted by the small, medium, and micro enterprise (SMME) sector. Enablis assists entrepreneurs to enable them to take their businesses to the next level, positively contributing to economic growth of the nation.”
Source: accenture.com
