Business: Why Do Sustainability and ESG Matter for African SMEs?

Rosalind Kainyah MBE and co-authors Elizabeth-Mary Arthur and Marguerite Simpson provide the answers in a practical new guide that strips away the corporate jargon and shows business leaders how sustainability and ESG can help them build stronger, more responsible and more valuable businesses.

Sustainability and ESG are often presented as complex, expensive ideas reserved for large corporations with equally large budgets. But, at their core, they are really about running a good business.

Managing costs and resources responsibly. Treating people fairly. Building strong relationships. Making ethical decisions. Putting the right governance in place. These are not abstract corporate ideals; they are everyday business practices that can protect and strengthen what an entrepreneur is building.

That is the thinking behind the new Sustainability and ESG Handbook for African SMEs, written by Rosalind Kainyah MBE, Elizabeth-Mary Arthur, Marguerite Simpson

Created specifically with African SME leaders in mind, the handbook strips away the corporate language and offers practical questions, relatable examples and useful tools that small-business owners can apply. Although its focus is Africa, its lessons are relevant to any small or medium-sized business seeking to understand how sustainability and ESG considerations can create, preserve and protect value.

The ambition behind it is simple: to help African businesses see sustainability not as another burden being imposed on them, but as a practical way to build stronger, better and more successful businesses.

Whether you run, advise, invest in or finance businesses-or work closely with African entrepreneurs-this handbook offers an accessible place to begin.

The handbook costs €7.50 and is available here:

https://www.kijaninexus.com/shop/p/sme-sustainability-handbook

About Rosalind Kainyah MBE

Rosalind Kainyah is the lead author of the Sustainability and ESG Handbook for African SMEs, co-authored with Elizabeth-Mary Arthur and Marguerite Simpson.

Through her business advisory services, sustainability courses and speaking engagements, Rosalind works with business leaders across Africa and beyond to understand how sustainability and ESG practices can create value, protect what they have built and maximise their impact.