The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Crafts (MCIA) organized, on Friday June 26, 2026, in the auditorium on the 26th floor of Postel 2001 in Plateau, a consultation and validation workshop for the operationalization of the UniPOD Côte d’Ivoire system. This strategic meeting aims to consolidate the national entrepreneurial ecosystem and accelerate the development of startups, SMEs and innovation in Côte d’Ivoire.
Presiding over the opening ceremony on behalf of the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Crafts, Kalil Konaté, the Chief of Staff, Raymond Laurent Assoua, welcomed the mobilization of the main actors of the Ivorian entrepreneurial ecosystem around this initiative carried out jointly by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the MCIA and MTN Côte d’Ivoire.
He stressed that this workshop constitutes a decisive step in the implementation of the UniPOD system, the ambition of which is to strengthen entrepreneurship, stimulate the growth of startups and promote the development of small and medium-sized businesses in Ivory Coast. “I invite experts, financial partners, incubators and entrepreneurs to analyze, enrich and validate this methodological document in order to build a consensual roadmap and a solid partnership framework,” he urged.
The Director General for the Promotion of SMEs and Crafts (DGPPMEA), Dr Yao Silvère Konan, for his part, indicated that this initiative was designed to offer SMEs and young entrepreneurs an environment favorable to innovation, technical support and the development of projects with high potential.
He also called on local authorities and all stakeholders to raise people’s expectations in order to design a system that effectively meets the needs of beneficiaries.
Reaffirming the private sector’s commitment to entrepreneurship, the Deputy Director of SME Sales at MTN Côte d’Ivoire, Jonathan Bolou, assured that his company will continue to support this initiative, in line with its vision of supporting innovation and economic transformation.
The work was marked by the presentation of the methodological approach of the UniPOD system, structured around five pillars, by Mr. Gbané Mahama of the UNDP, as well as by the presentation by the Director General of the DGPPMEA on the National Strategy for Entrepreneurship and Innovation 2025-2029. The discussions that followed allowed participants to make their contributions with a view to validating a common roadmap for the deployment of the UniPOD Côte d’Ivoire system.
