Snapshot
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10 membersbased in the region
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54 memberswith staff in the region
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136 membersmembers interested in the region
2017 Trends in West Africa
In West Africa, Capacity Development providers tend to be sector agnostic, and focus on partnership brokering.
- Governments are tackling unemployment through entrepreneurship and innovation. Governments of West African countries are becoming more proactive in responding to the region’s high unemployment and are often turning to youth entrepreneurship to reduce the level of unemployment and foster economic growth. For example, in Ghana, the recently launched National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Plan works with innovation hubs to accelerate job creation in Ghana.
- Nigeria is making huge strides on Ease of Doing Business Index. According to the recent World Bank Ease of Doing Business report, Nigeria is regarded as one of the 10 most improved countries worldwide. Nigeria was 169th and 170th on this report in 2017 and 2016, respectively. In 2018, Nigeria is ranked in the 145th position of the 190 countries in the ease of doing business index [18]. This stark improvement was due to the implementation of numerous reforms related to starting a business, paying taxes, and getting permits.
- Angel investors are bridging investment gaps. The mismatch between investors and entrepreneurs has created a major gap in SGB financing. Start-ups often seek investments at US $500,000 or less, below the size of most private equity investments. However, there has been an increase in angel investors, and emergence of their various networks in West Africa making deals that suit the start-up ecosystem. The investor networks include Lagos Angel Network, Ivoire Angels, Senegal Angels, and Sierra Leone Business Angel Network.