Ups

Securing finance is a major barrier to small-business growth, writes MultiChoice Group CEO, Calvo Mawela. To be truly empowered, SMEs need the skills to ...

We believe SMEs in the technology, sustainability and creative sectors will be fundamental to the next phase of Africa’s development. These young entrepreneurs are ambitious, innovative and motivated to make a difference for their people. This points to a digitally engaged youth, who will embrace the opportunities of connectivity as they become able to access it. The United Nations Population Division projects that by 2050 Africa will be home to around 2.5bn people – a quarter of the world’s population. The upshot is an exponentially-expanding range of digital opportunities for African start-ups. These are not simply growth sectors in the financial sense, but industries that promise to help solve Africa’s most pressing human challenges. Whether these pitches are successful is not the sole point of the process – the start-up founders are empowered with a set of skills that will serve them well throughout their business career. In this context, many global investors – particularly in the technology space – are eyeing Africa as a new growth region. The key lies in small businesses being able to grow, to scale up, and to transcend their immediate environment. The International Finance Corporation has estimated that the finance gap faced by formal MSMEs in developing countries is around $5.2 trillion – 19% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the 128 countries studied. Small businesses alone are not the solution to the development challenges of the world’s emerging economies. The World Bank has stated that small enterprises represent about 90% of businesses and create more than 50% of employment worldwide.