10 November 2022, Tripoli –  The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Tatweer Research agreed a new business start-up accelerator initiative in Tripoli, Benghazi and Sebha to create new businesses and generate jobs for hundreds of youths as a critical component of building peace in Libya. 

Half of Libya’s population are young people.  Expanding opportunities and support for yourng people to have meaningful jobs and be themselves engines of job creation represents a significant economic potential, which remains un-tapped. 

As part of its Local Peacebuilding and Resilience Programme, UNDP partnered with Tatweer Research to launch a business start-Up accelerator to support innovative businesses ideas, to build new market linkages, identify market niches, build relationship with partners and investors, and increase access to capital across the country.  The initiative also contributes to UNDP’s efforts to upscale institutional capacities with the Ministry of Local Government and its resolution to create Business Incubators & Accelerators.

During the signing event, the CEO of Tatweer Reasearch Mr. Khaled Elmufti stated, “entrepreneurship in Libya is a critical component in creating stability and economic prosperity in the country by diversifying the economy and creating job opportunities. Building on the work with UNDP, we are very excited to work with promising Libyan entrepreneurs and start-ups and help them in their growth phase. This partnership with UNDP will be a critical component in this new chapter for start-ups and we are very honoured to work with the dedicated UNDP Libya team to continue building the Libyan entrepreneurs’ ecosystem.”

UNDP Resident Representative, Mr. Marc-André Franche underlined, “job creation for youth remains at the heart of UNDP’s local peacebuilding efforts.  We are encouraged by this new partnership with Tatweer Research enabling entrepreneurs to grow and create pathways for sustainable employment. We are particularly grateful to the European Union for the continuous support to foster job creation and entrepreneurship in Libya.”

The signing ceremony was also an opportunity for start-ups already benefiting from the Tatweer-UNDP partnership to showcase progress and results of their growing businesses in innovative sectors. These include:

• Wild Plant Company for Natural Oils Extraction, specialising in extracting oils from herbal, medicinal and aromatic plants.
• Engraveha, producing custom-made engraved products.
• Mawja, providing technology and media services.

Background

UNDP supports Libya's transition towards peace, economic recovery, and sustainable development to help the country get on a more robust development path by supporting local authorities to restore essential services delivery and livelihood opportunities and promote peaceful co-existence. Job creation for youth is at the heart of UNDP’s local Peacebuilding efforts. This initiative is part of the Strengthened Local Capacity for Resilience and Recovery Project funded by the North of Africa Window of the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Stability which contributes in addressing the root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa (EUTF – NOA).