To instill a sense of creativity and encourage entrepreneurship among young Africans, it is essential, in the opinion of business leaders and academics, to set up spaces conducive to imagination and creativity.
Based on their experiences, business leaders and business school teachers explored the role of innovation in supporting young entrepreneurs and project leaders. According to them, young Africans need to evolve in an environment conducive to reflection and the development of talent. For Hamid Bouchikhi, professor of management and entrepreneurship, director of the Impact entrepreneurship center Essec, France, innovation is everything that seeks to break with the status quo. According to him, there are cultures that encourage innovation and others that put barriers to stay in the tradition.
“Africans are not lacking in creativity and innovation, they just need to have an enabling environment,” he said.
Three obstacles have to be overcome to reach this objective: the question of market access – difficult for young African entrepreneurs to be referred to principals -; access to finance and the lack of quality human resources.
Samir El Aichaaoui, President and CEO of Happy venture Maroc maintains that the State has a central role to play, beyond the funding of project leaders. “Where the authorities are expected is to break down all barriers that undermine innovation efforts, by putting in place the infrastructure, the regulatory framework,” he said. These authorities, added Samir El Aichaaoui, must also create the conditions allowing young Africans to express their talent and to create networks to develop their businesses. The other factor to take into account in promoting innovation, he says, is intellectual property. “Today, young African creators and entrepreneurs are not guaranteed to be protected on their patent or their brand. Inventions can be found in other countries without the permission of the owner, “he said. Mr. Aichaaoui believes that we need to secure people’s work. This will, in his opinion, also secure the investments that will follow. Marie-Euloge Pandi, Key Account Manager at Linkedin said that what Africa lacks in innovation is the lack of sharing of experiences of innovators who undertake and succeed. “We always argue that innovation and entrepreneurship is for other people. Which is far from the case. Innovation issues must grow with those who wear them, “she said. Explaining that the dynamism of the professional social network, Linkedin, was based on an innovation policy based on openness, the diversity of its employees and the sharing of ideas of all members of the structure.
“Innovation is not only about having the right idea, it is also about using it in a way that creates wealth and jobs. It is not created by a single person or a single entity. It is rather community and inclusive, “said Munir Amine Alaoui, president of the e-com and e-business commission at the General Confederation of Enterprises in Morocco. “The priority for the continent is to create growth and deal with unemployment. And without innovation, for the future, there is no possibility of wealth creation or employment, “he said. These business leaders believe that it is necessary to create a global platform of services and products in the ICT sector in Africa for the main contractors, in order to promote and encourage the development of the sector, by providing innovative and concrete solutions to across the continent.
– See more at: http://www.lesoleil.sn/2016-03-22-23-21-32/item/55786-entreprenariat-des-jeunes-en-afrique-plaidoyer-pour-la-creation-d -espaces-propices-al-innovation.html # sthash.d6jm1JMu.dpuf
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