The enpact story

Nine years ago, we set out to change the way international economic cooperation is being approached by giving direct support to the people doing the work. What started out with one mentoring program that connected  20 entrepreneurs across continental borders grew to providing direct financial support of nearly 7 million euros and supporting over 3,200 businesses around the world.

  • 15,000+

    jobs created
    or preserved

  • 3,200+

    businesses
    supported

  • 6.8M €

    paid in
    direct support

  • 1,100+

    mentors &
    experts

Our work


We work with entrepreneurs and support organizations across all development stages. Our approach is designed to facilitate quick and efficient access to the crucial resources needed for the sustainable growth of any business: financial support, training, mentoring and network development.

Since enpact was founded in 2013, the organization has grown to over 40 team members working across 10 countries. Currently, we are operating in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America

All our projects are founded on peer-to-peer knowledge exchange, connecting resources across ecosystems, and building global communities that support entrepreneurial activity. 

We collaborate with partner organizations around the world that share our vision for the sustainable development of the global entrepreneurship ecosystem. Together, we create projects tailored to the local needs of small businesses and organizations.

Our approach

  • Early stage development

    We empower new and existing businesses and organizations through mentoring, financial support and capacity-building over a period of nine to 12 months.

  • Crisis relief and resilience

    In a crisis, we provide quick direct financial support, resilience training and mentoring over a three to six months period for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to sustain their operations.

  • Growth and internationalization

    We facilitate market access opportunities and growth-oriented mentoring and training for businesses to expand their impact internationally.

How it all started


enpact was founded 9 years ago. What drove us to start the non-profit organization was the desire to conceive development cooperation differently. We wanted to use other formats, to think more entrepreneurially, to try out new things, to address and involve other target groups – especially entrepreneurs. We were also united by the frustration about a certain lack of results in development cooperation. At the very least, development cooperation (and we at enpact as part of it) have to ask ourselves about the cost-benefit ratio. In particular in view of the enormous sums already invested over decades. 

That is why we advocate to increasingly rely on new forms and concepts in order to increase the effectiveness. Today, we are convinced that putting entrepreneurship and the promotion of entrepreneurial ecosystems in the focus of our work provides a promising and self-sustainable approach. Why? 

By directly supporting those who are willing to take personal risks and already roll up their sleeves – founders and business owners – we empower exactly the right people to create required jobs and opportunities themselves. 

 

With our very first mentoring programs, we saw the immediate and tangible value that genuine connections have. This has been in our DNA ever since. The belief in horizontal learning and knowledge sharing. In other words: Programs from entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs.

Bringing together changemakers and entrepreneurial minds from different background has many merits: By providing a safe space for an exchange on equal footing, barriers are removed, friendships and partnerships are born and businesses are developed. It culminates in changing the courses of lives forever. 

However, connections alone are not enough: entrepreneurs need financial support to achieve real growth. Therefore, since 2019, we have been offering a range of programs that provide entrepreneurs and organizations with our approach. A powerful combined solution that unites mentoring, the building of personal and professional relationships and networks, the strengthening of capacities via a variety of tools, and – last but not least – direct financial support. 

Today, after years of building, refining, and honing this approach has been made as efficient as possible. It had its fair share of testing, pivoting, automation, knowledge sharing, and collaboration. It is now ready to be adapted and scaled – even at very short notice – to support entrepreneurs across different locations, development stages and crisis contexts. But, enough about us…

The real spotlight should be on the courageous people who are out there doing the work everyday to create impact of all kinds of scale. Check out their stories and get to know hundreds of impact-driven entrepreneurs. Also, get in touch with our international team leading all our projects around the world.

Intrigued? Then get involved and take part in empowering entrepreneurship. 

With love from Berlin,

Matthias Treutwein & Dr. Sebastian Rubatscher

     

  • 2013

    Launched enpact to connect founders across North Africa and Europe through mentoring programs

  • 2017

    Expanded our mentoring programs to East and West Africa

  • 2018

    Established a network to connect ecosystems across Europe and Asia through events and delegation trips

  • 2019

    Expanded our work to analyze and offer support programs to entrepreneurship ecosystems in Latin America

  • 2020

    Launched our crisis relief and recovery approach for founders affected by COVID-19, supporting 745 businesses across 8 countries

  • 2022

    Launched our first support program in Eastern Europe with a focus on helping support organizations in Moldova

WHO WE ARE

Get involved


Together we can achieve more.

Co-creation is one of our six core values and the foundation of everything that we do. You can find out more about how to get involved by getting in touch with us.

Let’s work together towards empowering entrepreneurs around the world to build sustainable, resilient businesses.

 

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