Multinational - African Training and Management Services (ATMS) Project / African Management Services Company (AMSCO)

The present intervention concerns a grant of UA 1.6 million for the African Training and Management Services Project (ATMS / AMSCO) to support the development of SMEs in ADF. The ATMS / AMSCO Project was launched in 1989. It is a joint initiative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), which is supported by a international private companies and a number of multilateral and bilateral donors. The Project helps African businesses become more competitive by seconding experienced managers to them and supporting their training efforts to improve managerial skills whose insufficiency is considered as one of the main causes of the poor performance of companies on the continent, in particular SMEs. The program is based on a two-part structure: i) a foundation, the ATMS Trust Fund which serves as a vehicle for donor grants; and ii) AMSCO BV, a limited liability company that manages the program. Under this mechanism, AMSCO is the project's means of intervention. This grant will strengthen the program and improve the quality of its services through the funding of the cost of management services, executive development activities and training.