Africa: A Continent with huge economic potential

euronews (in English)

Start-up businesses and innovation are soaring across Africa. With the world's second-largest continent looking towards the future, countries across the region are setting their sights on economic prosperity.

Transcript

00:00 Startups across Africa are booming,

00:03 but what are governments, CEOs,

00:05 and investors doing to bring together

00:08 the talent and technology of so many countries?

00:12 Welcome to The Exchange from our studio here in Doha.

00:18 Now, the countries and companies of

00:20 Africa's tech ecosystem are diverse,

00:23 but new ways are emerging for entrepreneurs to collaborate

00:27 across borders and capitalize on natural advantages

00:30 like demographics and network coverage.

00:33 Well, according to the United Nations,

00:35 Africa is the continent with the world's youngest population.

00:39 70% of people are under the age of 35,

00:43 40% are under 15, and that's the age group

00:47 that was born into the digital age.

00:50 Well, close to half a billion Africans

00:52 have a smartphone subscription.

00:54 That's higher than the US and UK combined.

00:58 Companies are capitalizing on these ultra-connected customers

01:02 and tech startups are emerging at a rapid rate,

01:05 so fast, in fact, that the growing ecosystem

01:08 of African tech firms is predicted

01:10 to be worth $712 billion by 2050.

01:15 So how are governments harnessing all this potential?

01:18 Well, over the last decade, Ethiopia has been one of Africa

01:21 and the world's fastest-growing economies.

01:24 Let's go to the capital, Addis Ababa,

01:26 and speak to the Minister of Labour and Skills,

01:28 Her Excellency, Mferahat Kamil.

01:31 Minister, what are you doing

01:32 to stimulate Ethiopian innovation,

01:34 and how is that impacting the rest of the continent?

01:37 Ethiopia is embarked upon

01:40 a very comprehensive reform agenda since 2018.

01:45 As part of the reform agenda,

01:50 investing on human capital has become a number one priority.

01:55 The government has taken several initiatives

01:59 following this commitment.

02:02 The first one is institutionalizing

02:05 the subject matter itself,

02:07 innovation and entrepreneurship.

02:10 Ethiopia believes that developing together

02:13 with its neighbours, so as our fates are together,

02:19 we are very much committed to work

02:23 with our sisterly and brotherly countries

02:27 in integrating in terms of infrastructure,

02:31 the free trade agreements,

02:33 and there are other regional integration as well.

02:36 Well, as we've heard from the minister there,

02:40 government strategies and free trade agreements

02:43 are helping to set the right conditions

02:45 for companies to grow.

02:47 But what about practical support on the ground

02:49 for smaller firms?

02:51 Our reporter, Deji Badmus, went to meet a tech entrepreneur

02:55 whose passion for supporting African retailers

02:58 has led to a $100 million investment.

03:01 Yes, Guy, informal stores or shops like the one behind me

03:06 account for most retail sales across Africa.

03:09 But there's one problem,

03:10 getting their supplies from manufacturers.

03:12 That's exactly where the B2B embedded

03:15 finance tech platform, Trade Depot, comes in,

03:17 serving as a bridge between manufacturers

03:20 and retailers using technology.

03:23 Driving the operation is CEO and co-founder,

03:26 Onyekachi Izukane.

03:27 He and his team are literally connecting consumer brands

03:30 in Africa directly to a target market

03:33 of retail outlets across the continent.

03:36 In Africa, the bulk of this retail doesn't happen

03:40 in the big supermarkets.

03:41 It happens in small neighbourhood stores.

03:44 And our thing is to create an e-commerce experience

03:49 for these retailers so they have a platform

03:51 that they can get everything they need from.

03:55 Today, Trade Depot stocks a wide range of inventories

03:59 of consumer goods in its warehouses.

04:01 It is from here that orders placed by retailers

04:04 are then distributed to their doorsteps.

04:07 You can simply just identify the items you want

04:11 and place a request on an app by calling a toll-free line,

04:15 by chatting over WhatsApp, whatever.

04:17 And then our job is to identify these items you want

04:21 and get them across to you by the next day.

04:25 The firm now serves a network of thousands

04:27 of retailers across Africa.

04:29 It also provides credit lines to enable these retailers

04:32 access inventory and pay in installments

04:35 as they sell on to their own customers.

04:37 75% of our user base is female-owned or female-led.

04:44 Now, a lot of these folks normally have no way

04:48 of getting access to credit.

04:51 In 2021, Trade Depot raised over $100 million

04:55 in equity and debt funding to scale its operations

04:58 and bring in more retailers into its platform.

05:01 The Nigerian-based company is one of the success stories

05:04 of tech startups on the continent.

05:08 Now, from one success story to an initiative

05:11 aiming to create thousands more.

05:14 The Global Startup Africa Awards and Fund

05:17 connects companies and investors across the continent.

05:20 I spoke to its founders about what

05:22 it takes to turn isolated examples of innovation

05:25 into pan-African prosperity.

05:29 The Global Innovation Initiative Group, our primary objective

05:33 is to find, fund, and grow globally relevant innovation

05:37 in Africa.

05:38 We have grown a pipeline, or have a growing pipeline,

05:42 of over 15,000 solutions, solving

05:45 some of the world's most critical challenges.

05:49 And together with that, we have a pan-African network

05:53 in order to connect and enable the different ecosystems

05:56 that we work in.

05:57 There are various studies that have been done.

06:00 The markets show the forecast up until 2075

06:03 that population demographics are one

06:06 of the fundamental key drivers of global growth.

06:09 There is only one young continent, and that is Africa.

06:15 Now it's time for our regular feature, Business in 60 Seconds.

06:19 Start the clock.

06:21 New York mega venue, Madison Square Garden,

06:23 will hold its AGM this month.

06:25 The venue has hosted some of the world's biggest acts

06:28 and sporting events this year, which

06:30 shareholders will be hoping will translate into good results.

06:34 With huge acts booked for 2024, it

06:36 could be an exciting year for concertgoers in the area.

06:40 Tech giant Microsoft will be hosting its AGM this month,

06:44 too.

06:44 Microsoft, in the last month, has announced

06:46 it will be launching a new chip product for upcoming AI

06:50 projects.

06:51 Shareholders will be hoping that this

06:53 will prove to be good news for the company's stock price.

06:57 And American wholesale chain Costco

06:59 will declare their quarterly results this month.

07:02 The huge company has grown from strength to strength

07:04 this year, with consumers looking

07:06 for more price-conscious deals as they shop.

07:09 The company has rolled out a new initiative,

07:12 offering members a free $40 voucher,

07:15 which they'll be hoping customers are quick to snap up.

07:21 So with a thriving business ecosystem,

07:24 companies across Africa are finding fresh ways

07:27 to connect and attract new customers.

07:31 If politicians and investors and CEOs

07:35 can continue to inspire Africa's youthful tech-savvy

07:38 populations, the future then looks

07:40 bright for the world's second biggest continent.

07:45 Well, that's all we have time for on this edition of the show.

07:48 Thanks for watching.

07:49 Please do check out euronews.com for all your latest business

07:52 news.

07:53 And join us again next time on The Exchange.

07:57 (upbeat music)

Category

Transcript

Recommended