About Us

AfYEF is a league of youth entrepreneurship organizations from across the African continent that serves as a representative voice for young entrepreneurs on AfCFTA. In late 2020, AfYEF began as an informal group of a few African youth entrepreneurship organizations who identified the need to form a synergy to mobilize their members for AfCFTA.

As an apex body, AfYEF was therefore formed with the primary objective of empowering African youth organizations to mobilize and support young entrepreneurs across the continent to actively participate and benefit from the AfCFTA agreement.

AfYEF aims to drive trade, advocate for policy reforms, provide business support services with needed information on funding source to facilitate access to credit and improve the business eco-system for the development of African youth entrepreneurs with a special focus on AfCFTA.

AfYEF has its headquarters situated in Ghana and currently have a combined membership strength of about 100,000

Our Mission

To connect, engage and support young entrepreneurs in their quest to leverage AfCFTA by driving trade and advocating for reforms.

Our Vision

To be foremost community of young entrepreneurs who are fully empowered to actively participate, contribute and benefit from AfCFTA.

Our Commitment

We believe that young entrepreneurs have the potential to make huge contributions to the economic, social and political development of Africa and as such we commit to strengthen, advocate and support the dreams of young entrepreneurs in Africa. We commit to engage stakeholders and facilitate the exchange of ideas in a bit to remove barriers to enterprise development for young people as AfCFTA envisaged.

We understand that with the introduction of AfCFTA, African young people are expected to play a key role in realizing the full potentials of the agreement. However, without the relevant knowledge, tools and capacity, youth businesses might not be able to maximize the benefits of AfCFTA or play any meaningful role. AfYEF is therefore set to ensure that African Young entrepreneurs gets all the needed support to leverage the large market offered by AfCFTA.

We are convinced that entrepreneurship makes an enormous and often under-recognized contribution towards economic development, and with over 70% of the African’s population been youth, young entrepreneurs have the potential to be a key driver toward prosperity. AfYEF seeks to play a role in building that human capital for the future, unleashing the economic potential of young people and promoting sustainable growth and development in the continent and beyond.

These coalitions seek to champion the cause of young entrepreneurs at the local, national, regional and international level, through their engagement with governments, the media, the public, and other relevant stakeholders on issues relating to AfCFTA. We are committed to achieving measurable progress towards the development of youth entrepreneurship and innovation within the continent.

AfYEF Core Values

The YOUNG Acronym

This YOUNG framework encapsulates our commitment to youth leadership while integrating our nine foundational core values. Let these principles guide our mission, inspire our daily actions, and drive the success of AfYEF

Y – Youth-Centric

Believing in the power of future leaders and that the future begins now.

O – Opportunity

Empowerment — creating chances for growth and success.

U – Unity

Collaboration — coming together as one community. Inclusivity — embracing diverse perspectives and talents.

N – Nurturing

Resilience — fostering the strength to overcome challenges. Integrity — upholding ethical standards in all we do.

G – Growth

Innovation — pushing boundaries and continuously improving.
Social Impact — making a positive difference in communities.
Excellence — striving for high-quality performance and results.