• Ecommerce giant Alibaba has launched the next round of its Netpreneur training programme in Africa.
• 360 business leaders across Africa from industries such as agriculture, education, ICT and trading will be taking part in the 10-day virtual course.
• Outstanding participants will earn the opportunity to travel to Alibaba’s headquarters in China for an in-person immersion course.

Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba, through its professional training arm Alibaba Group Initiatives (AGI), has today enrolled the second-ever class of more than 360 African entrepreneurs on its latest Netpreneur Training programme.

All participants are founders of their respective start-ups from industries such as agriculture, education, information and communication technology (ICT), and trading. The entrepreneurs were welcomed to the programme at a virtual opening ceremony supported by the Africa’s Business Heroes prize competition.

In a press statement, Alibaba says the Netpreneur training programme is scheduled to run from today until 10th November.

Alibaba says that the final 360 candidates were selected following a “rigorous” process. Further, the programme seeks to equip entrepreneurs and business leaders across the continent in different sectors with “tangible and actionable steps” needed to advance in the modern digital economy.

This year’s round comes after the success of the first group of African business leaders that participated in the first Netpreneur training programme in 2021.

Last October Alibaba graduated 70 African participants during the programme’s inaugural class.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KREtbExeQyI

“We are delighted to be able to continue advancing our vision of sharing the positive impact of the digital economy with entrepreneurs and enrolling our second cohort of African participants,” said Dan Liu, senior advisor at AGI.

Liu continues that since companies across Africa had to take their business channels online during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, “digitalisation is no longer a foreign concept to consumers and entrepreneurs.”

The entire programme will be held virtually and in English by certified Alibaba trainers experienced in leading their own digital businesses. Participants will take part in a series of online classes where they will delve into approaches to harnessing technology to grow their businesses within the local economy.

Participants can deepen their knowledge and understanding of:

• The digital economy in China and the latest trends and practices shaping its development.
• The journey of select traditional businesses that have successfully gone through digital transformation.
• The evolution of Alibaba’s business, including the role of digital technology in supporting the growth of companies in its ecosystem.
• Frameworks and approaches for building a successful and innovative business in today’s digital world.

Those that complete the programme will receive an e-certificate and will be eligible to join the AGI entrepreneur community. Participants selected as outstanding will earn the opportunity to participate in a one-week offline immersion program at Alibaba’s headquarters in Hangzhou, China.

“We hope this edition of our Alibaba Netpreneur Training will help entrepreneurs in Africa develop long-term, savvy digital strategies that will open up more opportunities for them,” Liu chimed.