In a session titled “Africa’s Unicorn Effect” which took place on Wednesday 5th May 2017 at the World Economic Forum on Africa, a panellist said that policy-makers should recognise the positive role that innovation can play in improving economic efficiency and creating jobs. The utility of innovations, which is clear to the innovators, needs to be highlighted to governments, who can stifle creativity with regulation
“Innovation is a conviction that something should be better. It’s the tool that really helps us close critical gaps in our education and infrastructure. For inclusive growth to be a reality, skills development and education have to become faster and smarter than ever before,” said Rapelang Rabana, founder of Rekindle Learning, Botswana. She further said that innovation is already playing an important role in addressing socio-economic challenges, but needs more support from policy-makers.
Governments in Africa need to understand the integral role that technology plays in the economy, treating it as a single sector rather than a broad, crosscutting and transformational issue.
According to Matsi Modise, Managing Director of SiMODiSA Start-Up, South Africa, Government regulation and a lack of enabling policy have been a handbrake on the country’s ability to position itself as a hub for start-ups and high-impact innovation. Lobbying efforts have resulted in a reduction of the requirements for registering intellectual property, but more needs to be done to lift heavy regulation.
Ciiru Waweru Waithaka, Chief Executive Officer of FunKidz, Kenya, said that small businesses are often viewed by policy-makers as fringe players in the economy, rather than as job creators and problem-solvers. Changing this perception would help improve the ecosystem for innovation. Skills shortages are also an issue. There is not enough skilled labour to operate the technology that exists, Waithaka said further.
Bright Simons, President, MPedigree, Ghana, said technology is not always recognised as a critical tool of empowerment but rather regarded as an activity on the margins of the economy. This attitude has undermined the significant contribution it can make to increasing economic efficiency and productivity. Governments need to mainstream technology in terms of policy and strategic thinking to raise its profile.
Bright further said that despite the growth of technology in Africa through start-ups and entrepreneurs, African governments still use their significant procurement budgets to buy technology solutions developed outside the continent, rather than taking advantage of the Africa-specific technology at their doorstep.
The panel also discussed the need for a shift in the way the education system works in order to foster entrepreneurialism in Africa. Currently, education tends to be content driven, with children fed information by teachers. The next frontier of human development is to cultivate independent thought and self-learning skills at the school level to prepare children for a world where life skills are more critical than ever.
Key points from the session
- The region has huge potential to create more “unicorns”, or privately-owned technology businesses valued at $1 billion or more.
- Realising success depends on creating a positive ecosystem for these vibrant enterprises to thrive and grow.
- The focus of education needs to shift towards self-learning and entrepreneurial thinking.
