Even though pleas have always been made to promote SME in the African continent, they have rarely given the expected results because of rare financing means and strict conditions on loans acquisitions at traditional banks.
Now, this widely criticized trend seems to be declining in favor of the new opportunities that the rapid growth of the 21 century digital revolution is offering. Thus, if not so long ago it was put on the sideline of economic development policy, the funding of project ideas is starting to gain some interest in the African continent. Innovative project developers are being hired especially among the youngster.
Bilateral, multilateral or private public funding companies have more and more interest in Africa because they are very much aware of all the possibilities that digital can offer like the ability to make incubators be some kind of project development labs.
The desired result are job creations, contribution to national added value and as indirect result reducing the unemployment rate within the young African population.
The promotion of the potential value in the entrepreneurship of young African students has become a reality thanks to the reinforcement of professionalization and research in the continent higher education. The creation of Small and MEdium size Entreprises (SME) which usually represent 80 or 90% of the specific features of companies in African countries, has become marvelously more active. It is because of a more active implication of young African in the conception and building of progects.
Administrations along with international development institutions act as guarantees to allow young entrepreneurs ( startups included) to borrow money which is crucial to the development of their progects.
It is a way of supporting young entrepreneurs by allowing them to overcome the obstacles of funding their progects. We have CTIC as an example in Dakar, Senegal which has the support of public authority, World Bank and private companies especially mobile phone companies. This Senegalese incubator is also financed by payments from the profits of some fifteen incubated companies. There are incubators in other African countries that practically work the same way as this one, for the greater benefit of young entrepreneurs.