YEPers on study tour to the Dakar Farmers Market

From February 2nd to the 6th, a group of youth entrepreneurs, selected from all regions, districts and business backgrounds of The Gambia, visited the well-established Dakar Farmers Market in Senegal as part of an entrepreneurial benchmark study tour organized by The Association of Small Scales Enterprises in Tourism, with the support of YEP and coaches. The study was successful in providing the participants with practical exercises on developing entrepreneurial skills and improving the quality of their products-varying from agro-processing to crafts- by observing and comparing the business practices of successful Senegalese youth entrepreneurs. Participants also engaged in peer-to-peer discussions on marketing, creativity, financing and networking strategies to overcome the difficulties of building a business. Upon return, participants continued the collaborative process by organizing a youth seminar to share their experiences through which they also created new partnerships, market-linkages and priority goals for improvement and support. The study tour will facilitate the implementation of a similar market platform in The Gambia.

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