ENTREPRENEURSHIP NEWS

Finalists announced in the MTN Entrepreneurship Challenge powered by Jumia

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Following a rigorous selection process, involving more than 700 applicants from 26 countries across Africa, the top three finalists in the MTN Entrepreneurship Challenge powered by Jumia have been revealed.

The challenge, which aims to boost entrepreneurship and innovation, as well as build a stronger and more sustainable business environment on the continent, kicked off in February, and is a joint initiative between MTN, Jumia and the MTN Solution Space based at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business.

Through the entrepreneurship challenge, students were invited to develop a unique digital application or smart solution to address a problem faced in Africa. Applicants heeded the call and hundreds of original ideas covering the areas of E-Commerce Marketplaces, Education Technology, Smart Cities and Solutions, and Health Technology were received. 

Over the past few weeks, the ideas were narrowed down, with 11 Live Pitch events taking place from Cameroon to South Africa, to shortlist the top candidates who will eventually pitch their business ideas at the Entrepreneurship Festival in Cape Town in May 2016.

The three finalists are:

Pass.ng (Nigeria)
Pass.ng is a web, desktop and mobile-based CBT examination preparatory and testing platform, with a vision to help candidates excel in all the major Nigerian Examinations and tests.

MedRX (Ghana)
MedRx app is an interactive health platform for all users who have health needs. The app connects users to health personnel from various fields of practice including hospital, pharmacy, laboratory and academia.

Vicoba (Tanzania)
Village Community Banks (Vicoba) are an important instrument of development work, allowing people who do not have access to conventional bank accounts, to access informal investment groups. Vicoba app creates a collaborative platform that includes existing tools for financial and task management in a way that is adapted for the African market.

MTN Solution Space Manager, Sarah-Anne Arnold, congratulated the winners and commented: “Universities are resource-rich, highly networked and create opportunities for students to find like-minded co-founders and explore and develop new opportunities together, and are therefore the ideal environments to encourage entrepreneurs. This was shown by the amazing talent that emerged during the incredible week of Live Pitches which took place across campuses in 11 countries, in collaboration with partner universities and sponsors. Congratulations and best of luck to the finalists”.

The top two applications from each region were selected for the semi-finals and awarded the opportunity to undertake a short course from GetSmarter in order to build new capabilities in areas such as Search Engine Optimisation or digital marketing.

The finalists will face a panel of experienced business leaders at the Entrepreneurship Festival, where the winning team will be named. The panel includes Jeremy Hodara, co-CEO Africa Internet Group, Professor Walter Baets, Director of the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, and Herman Singh, MTN Group Chief Digital Officer. 

“We are incredibly impressed with the calibre of applicants and the level of innovation shown. We are looking forward to the finals and wish our contenders the best of luck. We are certain that whichever team emerges victorious, it is the continent that will be the biggest winner, as entrepreneurship and locally developed solutions are what will enable the growth and development of this continent,” says Singh. 

Bankole Cardoso, the Head of Communications at Africa Internet Group added, “From the application phase, we were very impressed with the high quality business models and it was not at all easy for the judges to select from so many promising businesses. Over the last week, we have held over 100 live pitches and given young entrepreneurs across the continent a platform to showcase their business ideas and even more importantly, to receive critical feedback from experienced professionals on our judging panels. The gaps in the African entrepreneurship ecosystem are in capital and mentorship so it was great to undergo an exercise like this that will no doubt force them to improve. I now look forward to working closely with these three finalist teams to prepare them for what’s to come in Cape Town. It is an incredible opportunity for all of them to propel themselves to the next level.

The winners will be announced at the Entrepreneurship Festival with the top team being awarded the opportunity for incubation at the premises of either MTN Solution Space at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, or at one of nine Jumia offices across the continent. The winner will also win a cash prize of $25,000 towards their start-up and have access to a Facebook Start Programme to the value of $15 000, which includes tools and services needed to build mobile applications. 

MTN EC by Jumia in numbers

• Collaborated with more than 60 universities in 13 countries in Africa
• Received over 700 applications, including 345 videos, from 26 countries in 3 languages - English, French and Arabic
• More than 1,000 students applied to the competition
• Top categories are E-Commerce Marketplaces, Education Technology, Smart Cities and Health Technology
• Organised 11 Live Pitch events from Cameroon to South Africa, in partner universities or Jumia offices
• Met more than 250 young entrepreneurs during Live Pitch events all over Africa
• Top three countries in number of applications: Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon

Posted on 22 Apr 2016 12:19

ENTREPRENEURSHIP NEWS

The state of start-up entrepreneurship for Africa in the 21st century

SAVE | EMAIL | PRINT |  PDF    BY: WENDY VAN SCHALKWYK

The market recession of 2007 created serious challenges by insufficiently providing jobs for people entering and leaving the formal job market due to retrenchments and slow market growth.

While Africa’s rate of growth has outperformed the global rate over the last decade, growth remains insufficient to provide jobs. The African Economic Outlook (2015) estimates 200 million people between the ages of 15 and 24 in Africa. This is the youngest population in the world and population growth remains rapid. The number of young people in Africa will double by 2045 and in 2050, 70% of the world’s population will come from Africa. Between 2000 and 2008, Africa’s working age population (15-64 years) grew from 443 million to 550 million, an increase of 25%. Left unattended, this will have serious economic and political repercussions, potentially resulting in large scale civil unrest and potential wars.

123RF

A McKinsey and Company Report (2011) provides insights into the growing demand for entrepreneurship to drive the global economy. With 12% of working age population engaged in early stage development of entrepreneurship and SME’s accounting for 52% of the Global Domestic Product (GDP), the outlook for entrepreneurship looks positive, but statistics reveal that 90% of start-up entrepreneurs fail within the first two - three years of business mainly due to a poor mind-set, lack of effective business and funding models.

So how can government support the growth and development of start-up entrepreneurs?

McKinsey’s highlights that the root cause lies in the early stage development of SMME’s, how they are enabled, created and sustained through their business lifecycle. Their report indicates the various factors impacting the entrepreneur and their success.

While the definition of entrepreneurship has changed significantly since it being defined in the 16th century, the purpose for entrepreneurship remains consistent, presenting the economic motivation and value creation drivers for entrepreneurs.

Respected global strategy academic authors agree that start-up entrepreneurship is critical to national economies as it contributes to job creation, productivity and economic growth. Interestingly, Chakravorti (2015) states while the mature world and business struggles through recession and recovery, 75% of the growth of global output will come from the emerging markets, pointing to nibble, fast paced and agile start-up entrepreneurs who can develop bottom up strategies and emerge as winners overnight.

Six centuries later, entrepreneurship has become a global phenomenon, spanning micro-entrepreneurs to visionary individuals creating global companies in less than ten years.

The Global Entrepreneurial Monitor, GEM (2006) which tracks the Total Early Stage Entrepreneurial Activity (TEA) reveals the average rate (per 100) adults engaged in business start-ups is 9.43%. Interestingly, the average increases when developing countries are grouped together and includes the countries of Peru (40.15%), the Philippines (44%), Thailand (15.20%), Brazil (11.65%), India (10.42%) and Chile (9.14%). Locally, by comparison, South Africa rated a mere average of 5.29%. Eight years later in 2014, the Total Early Stage Entrepreneurial activity statistics have shown positive increases in both developed and developing countries. Refer Figure 2.2.

Source: South African Business Incubator Establishment Handbook (2014: p.49)

Factors for entrepreneurial start-up success

Forbes Online, January 2015, points to successful factors for start-up entrepreneurs and statistics reveal that globally only a mere 10% of start-up entrepreneurs succeed and those that do include the following factors:

1. The supply of market relevant products and services
2. Good leadership
3. Market pull
4. Team tenacity

Similarly, The Allan Gray Orbis Foundation (2014) commented on the 5th Global Economic Symposium (GES), in Morocco, themed “Harnessing the Power of Technology for Innovation and Entrepreneurship” that for entrepreneurship to succeed start-up entrepreneurs must -

1. Prove their business concept as soon as possible
2. Build reputation and credibility fast 
3. Work on securing customers as soon as possible

Interestingly, this is contrary to the Global Economic Monitor (2014) which focusses more on business and finance models and leadership, revealing the levels of complexity, varied perspectives and opinions on what exactly constitutes the factors for start-up success.

On closer inspection, van Schalkwyk reveals that they are in fact saying the same things but in different form. ‘It’s about semantics’ she says ‘and building bridges of understanding and communication in the simplest form in order to share the wisdom and valuable insights with start-up entrepreneurs, as complexity can be seen as simple to some, simplicity can be seen as complex to others. Building a culture of good, able and responsible leaders, with good ethics and compassion to influence and achieve a common vision, goal and understanding between stakeholders is becoming more and more critical to motivating, stimulating and mobilising the change and actions needed to muster positive economic growth. In the 21st Century entrepreneurs must therefore become positive key drivers for the value creation of a better world, which directly impacts and determines the society and environment in which we live and will operate in, with power to inform a new paradigm of existence.’

According to McKinsey (2011), the 21st century belongs to the entrepreneur and underpinned by three pillars of success i.e. their ecosystem (or market environment), financing and culture. Countries that outperform their peers in these three areas collectively will succeed in entrepreneurship. This explains why entrepreneurs in developed countries experience higher success.

Similarly, The Global Entrepreneurial Monitor (2014) cites a country’s national economic framework as a factor for entrepreneurial success. It highlights that the success of entrepreneurship is directly linked to its local economic framework. It states three major motivating factors for entrepreneurship within countries and this is linked to the value drivers of the country’s economy such as factor driven economies, efficiency driven economies and innovation driven economies

The GEM 2014 report advocates The Entrepreneurial Framework Conditions (EFC), playing a significant role in solving the challenges for entrepreneurs, but still requires the entrepreneur to do the right actions to achieve the right results, profits and outcomes, confirming that actions are key to growth, development and success. Refer Figure 2.3. The report shows how developed countries are set up for success while developing economies struggle with challenges and obstacles that hinder their growth and development.

As an example of this is the fact that the South African government launched their first handbook for entrepreneurial incubators, sponsored by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), twenty years later when compared to developed economies. Refer Figure 2.4



For South Africa, the incubator support programme aims to assists SMME entrepreneurs in the start-up phase with support and services that will enable their growth and development, offering incentives for investment and support initiatives, but business models and methods are changing rapidly, fuelled by e-commerce and disruptive technology innovations.

Source: South African Business Establishment Incubator Handbook (2014: P.15)

According to respected academics, third world countries have caught up with first world countries on securing future trade agreements and protecting their markets. Initiatives such as BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) for developing countries are examples of such trade and market protection initiatives and real global alliances which influence purchasing and sales agreements between business and state.

These powerful trade agreements will have a direct impact on entrepreneurship opportunities that will direct and leverage business trade partner agreements and growth into the future.

For more information on how develop an effective entrepreneurial culture or how to reduce the failure rate of start-up entrepreneurship ventures in the 21st Century, kindly emailwendyvanschalkwyk@gmail.com.

Posted on 7 Apr 2016 12:50

 

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ABOUT WENDY VAN SCHALKWYK

Van Schalkwyk, is an International Masters of Business Administration student with Business School in the Netherlands (BSN) and currently completing her IMBA dissertation thesis on the topic: How to reduce the failure rate of start-up entrepreneurship in the 21st Century. She is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MI-Ashanti International (Pty) Ltd, a 21st Century high performance business and training consulting firm, a director of Armorong (Pty) Ltd - a new renewable energy tech start-up, a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow and sits of the Board of Trustees of Living Hope NGO in the Western Cape, South Africa. She has a passion for people, the environment and business and is intentional about making a valuable contribution to aid the success of start-up entrepreneurship and building good leadership.

The New Age News

Google’s digital skills for 1 million Africans

April 14, 2016

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Google’s digital skills for 1 million Africans. Picture: Getty Images

GOOGLE has pledged to train 1 million people in digital skills in the next year as part of its contribution to growing Africa’s digital economy.

“By 2020 there will be half a billion users in Africa, which presents an opportunity for African businesses and digital entrepreneurs,” the US tech giant said.

Google has partnered with Livity Africa to create two training programmes – Digity Bytes which aims at helping young people develop a digital career and Digity Pro, a three-month programme that develops digital specialists for jobs in companies or digital agencies.

Yesterday the group launched online learning portal digifyafrica.com. The Digify programmes are all free and will provide tools and knowledge on subjects like building an online presence, creating content, understanding web design and user experience, social media and app development.

A group of 65 Googlers from nine different countries has helped Livity develop content and provide mentorship as well as deliver the training. Bunmi Banjo, digital education lead at Google Africa, said more needs to be done to support African people to succeed in the digital world.

“The internet offers huge opportunities to start new businesses and grow existing ones, and we’re committed to helping Africans make the most of the digital revolution,” Banjo said.

Youth unemployment across Africa is 35% in South Africa, 17% in Kenya and 13% in Nigeria. Google said developing digital entrepreneurship and creating job opportunities for young people is critical to Africa’s growth.”-THELMA NGOMA

SOURCE: The New Age

Southern African News

• Politics

Writing the Struggle – EPAs: The 

European game is over, 

comrades

7th May 2013

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The current episode between some African countries and European Union over the 

Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) proves to a great extent what Franz Fanon 

talks about when he says: “The new day which is already at hand must find us firm, 

prudent and resolute.”
In this case, Namibia has stood firm and resolute in refusing to be dragged into an agreement that would benefit Europe only.
The EPAs are part of a new regime of trade agreements done regionally and in line 

with the World Trade Organisation (WTO). They are a renegotiation of a series of 

other trade agreements that existed when most African countries gained independence.

The deadline for the agreements was supposed to have been 2007 when most other countries signed on but others including Namibia and South Africa in the SADC region 

refused to sign before proposed changes to some clauses were done.
Namibia’s argument is that the EU is asking far too much than what the WTO rules 

prescribe.

As the situation stands today, the EPAs are crafted to benefit the EU rather than Africa.

Furthermore, the EPAs have no due regard for existing African regional trade bodies 

such as the Southern African Customs’ Union (SACU) to which Namibia has been a 

member for more than 100 years.
Caught in the harsh grip of poverty, poor business environment that has seen 

developing industries closing down because of financial predicament; joblessness; 

and poverty, many African countries cannot compete with the EU countries.

If Namibia signs and for those countries that signed the EPAs in their current form, 

Africa will be reduced to an importer of consumer goods from the EU without any development on the ground.

Critics have encouraged African leaders to

·    Challenge the EPAs false urgency

·    Insist that African countries’ access to EU markets continue during negotiation

·    Call for an extension of the signing timetable

·      Reject the negotiation of issues that have already been rejected at the WTO

·         Reject any provisions on intellectual property and services which go beyond 

existing commitments under the WTO agreements

·       Reject the EU’s demand that any future trade benefits that African countries 

might give to other major trading economies must also be given to the EU.

So where does Fanon fit into all this, you may ask? The last chapter of his book, “The Wretched of the Earth” aptly summarises the scenario unfolding before us today. 

Europe has always played games with Africa. If it’s not a political game, then it is an economical one. In every match Europe has engaged Africa, she sought to smuggle in

goals.

“Come, then, comrades, the European game has finally ended; we must find something different. We today can do everything, so long as we do not imitate Europe, so long as 

we are not obsessed by the desire to catch up with Europe,” Fanon exhorts.

Although Fanon said this in 1961, Namibia and South Africa as well as all those countries that are resisting the EPAs are showing that they are tired of playing Europe’s rearguard.

“Come, brothers, we have far too much work to do for us to play the game of rearguard. 

Europe has done what she set out to do and on the whole, she has done it well; let us stop blaming her, but let us say to her firmly that she should not make such a song and dance about it.

We have no more to fear; so let us stop envying her,” Fanon says.

Indeed, Europe today stands in the Third World’s path like a “colossal mass whose aim should be to try to resolve the problems to which Europe has not been able to find the answers”.

Have you imagined how and why Europe runs to try and solve African problems when 

Greece and such other countries in their midst have gone to the dogs?

Fanon urges Africa to move at her own pace and set her own target instead of playing the catching-up game.

“The pretext of catching up must not be used to push man around, to tear him away from himself or from his privacy, to break and kill him.

“No, we do not want to catch up with anyone. What we want to do is to go forward all the time, night and day, in the company of Man, in the company of all men,” he says.

Signing the EPAs as they are is a refusal to chart a new path, according to Fanon.

“It is a question of the Third World starting a new history of Man, a history which will 

have regard to the sometimes prodigious theses which Europe has put forward, but 

which will also not forget Europe’s crimes, of which the most horrible was committed 

in the heart of man, and consisted of the pathological tearing apart of his functions and 

the crumbling away of his unity,” he further explains.

Yes comrades, the European game is over.

Daily Sun News

NATIONAL

4 HOURS AGO

'JUDGE IS NOT GOD' - HANI!

   

By  News24.com Thursday, April 14, 2016 12:22

Chris Hani's widow Limpho Hani. Photo by Herman Verwey  ~ 

THE Hani family will take its fight against Janusz Walus's imminent release on parole to the Supreme Court of Appeal, after the High Court in Pretoria dismissed an application for leave to appeal the decision to release him.

"She [the judge] is not God, we have other courts to go to," Chris Hani's widow Limpho Hani told reporters today.

She was speaking shortly after Judge Nicolene Janse van Nieuwenhuizen dismissed government's bid to appeal her ruling that Walus could be released on parole.

“As black people in this country... we will continue to fight until justice is done," she said.

Justice Minister Michael Masutha applied for leave to appeal the ruling, just two days after the 23rd anniversary of the SACP leader's assassination.

Walus, a Polish immigrant, shot Hani dead in the driveway of his Boksburg home on April 10, 1993.Hani expressed her bitter disappointment with Van Nieuwenhuizen’s judgment and accused her of not being fair. 

She urged her to take a leaf out of Judge Thokozile Masipa's book in her handling of Oscar Pistorius’s case. Masipa granted the State leave to appeal her ruling that the former paralympian was guilty of culpable homicide.

"She did not deny NPA leave to appeal, she said go for it," Hani said.

"That's what I call somebody who gave a judgment with no agendas. She was confident that her judgment, as far as she was concerned, was fair.

"But this one, it's so interesting, she denied the minister leave to appeal. It means she is not confident about her decision, that's what I am saying. I wish she could be mentored by Judge Masipa.". 

HTTP://WWW.NEWS24.COM/SOUTHAFRICA/NEWS/JANUSZ-WALUS-JUDGE-NEEDS-MENTORING-FROM-OSCAR-PISTORIUS-JUDGE-HANI-FAMILY-20160414

Southern African News

• Politics

Writing the Struggle – Senghor’s 

negritude rooted on self-

actualisation

22nd April 2013

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One of negritude’s arguments was that even if one is as dark as three nights put 

together, the first step towards self-actualisation is to love oneself.

This came about because over the years, Africans especially women had developed 

some self-negation traits that saw them seek to change their biological and physical 

make-up using either skin enhancing lotions or even starving themselves to death 

just to get the slim body the West so much adores.

It was not only women but men too who would go all the way to try and sound or 

behave like Westerners. There was an era when men too resorted to skin-lightening 

creams just to hide their black mask.

Indeed, most men would love to have slim women as compared to the robust 

and heavily-built African woman.

Negritude sought to instil some self-confidence in Africans on the continent as 

well as elsewhere in the world.

For Leopold Sédar Senghor, negritude means sharing “certain distinctive and innate characteristics, values and aesthetics” as shown in his poem titled ‘To New York’, 

where he focuses on Harlem, the (in)famous black township.

In the poem, Senghor urges New York to “Listen to the distant beating of your 

nocturnal heart./ The tom-tom’s rhythm and blood, tom-tom blood and tom-tom.

“New York! I say New York, let black blood flow into your blood./ Let it wash the 

rust from your steel joints, like an oil of life/ Let it give your bridges the curve of 

hips and supple vines./ Now the ancient age returns, unity is restored,/ The

reconciliation of the Lion and Bull and Tree/ Idea links to action, the ear to the 

heart, sign to meaning./ See your rivers stirring with musk alligators/ And sea 

cows with mirage eyes. No need to invent the Sirens.”

The imagery in the above stanza captures the greatness inherent in Africa and 

its peoples. Let black blood … let it wash the rust … like an oil of life…

He also alludes to night, which is a very strong symbolism because blackness 

is as natural as the night. Nobody can escape the night. As such, nobody can 

escape nature or biological make-up.

For Senghor, Africans oiled development in today’s metropolis and that fact 

alone should make them proud and stand tall even on the face of debilitating 

circumstances.

Self-actualisation in one’s physical outlook does not come alone but is 

accompanied by one’s beliefs, which are simply culture and traditional norms.

This combination gels into a very potent tool against any oppression and the 

Chinese as well as Japanese are just but one good example of how a well-cultured 

people can defy external odds and defeat such forces.

Writing in “Negritude: A Humanism of the Twentieth Century”, Senghor says 

that negritude is “diametrically opposed to the traditional philosophy of Europe”.

He further argues that European beliefs are founded on “separation and opposition: 

on analysis and conflict” while Africa’s is rooted on unity, balance negotiation and 

an appreciation of “movement and rhythm”.

Nigerian academic, Francis Abiola Irele in his study “The African Experience in 

Literature and Ideology”, sums up Senghor’s negritude beliefs as one largely 

based on “sensuality, rhythm, earthiness and a primeval past”.

“The traditional stereotypes of African culture are not directly challenged by 

Negritude – Africans are essentially spiritual according to Senghor – they 

are modified.

“Negritude is a process of negotiation which proposes a counter-myth or 

counter-reading of those traditional stereotypes with the aim of valourising 

and celebrating the African personality,” Irele writes.

According to Irene, Senghor’s conception of Negritude holds that one’s inner 

and outer essence is informed, defined by one’s race.

Although there has been some conflicting theories about Senghor’s negritude 

beliefs, the essence still remains that self-actualisation is central to being a 

human race in a world battered by several forces seeking to destroy the weakest.

There is also within negritude the belief that the colonised should acquire the 

colonisers’ values and use them as a weapon against domination.