Bamako hosts Francophone Africa investor summit
Bamako, Mali (PANA) – The first Francophone Africa investor summit, which brings together investors, entrepreneurs, projects managers, incubators and financial institutions from several African countries, opened on Thursday in Bamako, Mali.
The summit, whose theme is Digital at the heart of dynamic francophone Africa, is a response to the financial challenges facing the entrepreneurial ecosystem of the sub-region where youths face problems of financing, particularly for newly set up enterprises.
The hundred participants of the two-day Bamako summit will have to find appropriate solutions to certain questions: How to connect the region in a bid to draw huge investments? How to reinforce the profitable investment potential in Francophone Africa? How to highlight existing opportunities?
According to Malian Minister of Digital Economy and Communication, Modibo Arouna Touré, Mali is implementing a development policy of its digital sector, which focuses on the establishment of an ecosystem appropriate to its development.
In this sense, he said that his ministry initiated, with the help of the World Bank and all the actors of digital entrepreneurial ecosystem, a draft bill governing the establishment of a legal framework that can contribute to the development of start-ups and incubators.
The bill aims to establish an innovative framework, which focuses on the digital and technology levers to promote the development and improvement of the target group on the one hand and the population in general on the other hand.
For Mr Touré, "start-ups have become undoubtedly a new economic and original model that can contribute to the development in our countries, by taking up several development challenges. They favour growth, encourage investment, create jobs with strong economic value, not only to generate significant dividends, but also to reduce unemployment’’.
The summit is, therefore, a meeting point offering sharing and exchange opportunities, as well as a framework enabling youths to listen to practical advice, receive lessons in a bid to better communicate around their projects and offers a framework to established solidarity based on a spirit of co-responsibility and inter-dependence, he said.
Co-founder of Brightmore Capital, a regional fund operating in Francophone Africa, N'Dèye Thiaw said that start-ups in Africa meet difficulties to obtain financial support they need to develop.
"They exceeded the stage to be financed by a micro-financial institution, but do not have access to classical financial services’’, she regretted, adding that those enterprises are often young and have minimal financial and human resources to achieve their potential.
In line with the summit, the grouping of the 20 best Francophone Africa start-ups is held in Bamako.
-0- PANA GT/JSG/MSA/AR 29Mar2019
