What is the Africa SME Champions Forum, an event dedicated to African SMEs?
The Africa Champions Forum is a unique event in Africa dedicated to the growth of SMEs. As you know, SMEs make up 90 to 99% of Africa's private sector, depending on the country, and it is they who create jobs. We know that we are facing a social crisis of massive youth unemployment in Africa. And it is these SMEs that can create the thousands of jobs that our young people lack. That's why this forum was created to facilitate growth through three dimensions: access to finance, access to new markets and capacity building.
"Start-ups are special in that they are at the beginning of the chain. So they are the first risk. Because a start-up is said to be risky, it needs 'risk' financing”
What does the next edition of the Africa SME Champions Forum 2023 have in store for us?
This new edition follows the previous one, held in Kampala last October, after two years without an event due to the COVID19 pandemic. In the meantime, the fabric of African SMEs was largely abandoned, even though they were the ones who needed answers the most. It was important for us to maintain the momentum created in Kampala so that SMEs can benefit from the holistic responses we can provide through the Forum. This includes talking to financial institutions and matching their funding requirements, meeting other SMEs and also providing operational support through the masterclasses.
Startups are also the fabric of the African economy. They are resilient, innovative and attractive… How can they be better supported?
The special thing about startups is that they are at the beginning of the chain. So, they are the first risk. Because a start-up is a risky business, it needs "risk" financing. Hence these venture capital funds. We need more venture capital, more business angels, those who have the resources, the support tools. We lack that kind of ecosystem. We don't have the kind of ecosystem that we're looking for: big fortunes that are able to give money on an almost philanthropic basis, and investment and venture capital funds. Most entrepreneurs who manage to raise money come from outside the continent because they have access to these funding networks. We need to build a different funding system.
"Even if digital transformation makes it easier, companies need to be more efficient upstream in their cycle”
Does digital transformation also offer these start-ups alternatives in terms of funding?
Digital transformation is undoubtedly the answer. When you see how easy it is for SMEs to operate with digital technology in the logistics, finance and energy sectors... You can access electricity because you have a kit attached to your phone, it's extraordinary. You can borrow money thanks to the online platform. You can have your products delivered or rent out your bed and breakfast through an online platform... But even if digital technology makes things easier, the business cycle needs to be more efficient upstream. In terms of productivity. When we say that digital allows us to deliver faster, there is an industrial process behind it that needs to be adapted.
