ITC’s E-Learning courses are very helpful for people in developing countries. They help us gain awareness of developed countries’ requirements for imports, as well as the kind of quality and quantity they need.

The reason why I need to learn is that I need to contribute to my country by helping to develop the SME sector. Like many developing countries, Myanmar is still struggling to move forward, and the SME sector could be the essential part of our country’s economic engine. As a development practitioner, I have to internalize trade-related skills and knowledge in order to teach and share them with local stakeholders, mainly market players who play major roles in their different sectors.

Click here to read the complete participant review from Win Thein

The SME Trade Academy is an e-learning programme that I would recommend to any thoughtful trade professional, exporting SME and the organized private sector (OPS) in developing and least developed countries. The courses which I took are a compendium of those topics that any staff member working in Trade Support Institutions (TSIs)/Trade Promotion Organizations (TPOs) as well as Foreign Trade Representatives (FTR) should master. I simply cannot thank the team enough for this wonderful initiative, and I am convinced that it will go a long way towards impacting the trade skills in developing and least developed countries. All of the course notes and case studies are very useful reference materials for research work.

Click here to read the complete participant review from Raymond Olu Ikulajolu

The course outlines and their contents were easy to understand. The lectures, the videos and the exercises made it easy to grasp the lessons since they were very practical. I loved the fact that it was possible to download the lecture contents in a simple and safe manner, as it means that I will be able to easily refer to them in the future. I would highly recommend the SME Trade Academy to anyone working with SMEs, as well as to SMEs themselves!

Click here to read the complete participant review from Florence Jelagat

I feel that the courses offered by the SME Trade Academy are of great importance in two ways. First, they are an excellent resource, not just for SMEs planning or starting their export or international business activities, but also for other actors in the value chain, such as suppliers, trade promotion institutions, trade representatives, the diaspora, TSIs, trade finance institutions, etc. Second, they are very useful for professionals trying to begin their career, or already working in international trade, SME business development, trade and market-related consultancy, as well as research and advisory support services.

Click here to read the complete participant review from Masresha Yimer

With the knowledge that I obtained from the “Helping SMEs Generate Export Business”course, I successfully introduced several school outreach programmes in Zimbabwe, which contributed to a 5% increase in sales contribution for the 3 months ending in September 2014. Furthermore, the“Engaging with the Diaspora for Trade”course motivated me to pursue a market assessment of the Zimbabwean diaspora through the Venecom Marketing trade and export portfolio. Once it is completed, this assessment will identify market opportunities for Zimbabwean SMEs to diversify internationally, with the aim of increasing export opportunities for these companies.

Click here to read the complete participant review from Andiswa Ndlovu