The European Union (EU), through the European Commission, and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), have agreed to provide €60-million to the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the African Development Bank’s (AfDB’s) joint Boost Africa initiative, enabling it to support higher-risk investment.
The EU and OACPS commitment will enable higher levels of risk for individual investments made by fund partners and support technical assistance to further strengthen entrepreneurial skills across Africa.
The Boost Africa initiative is providing €300-million to support targeted financing, provide technical assistance and share best practice for tech startup companies, nature conservation, agricultural innovation and entrepreneurs across the continent.
Four years after its launch, Boost Africa has created jobs and unlocked economic growth across Africa and helped to transform access to entrepreneurial finance.
Created by the EIB and the AfDB and driven by hands-on investment fund experts on the ground, Boost Africa is unlocking opportunities for hundreds of young entrepreneurs to drive innovation across Africa.
Scaling up Boost Africa will ensure that specialist investment in innovation and technology can be increased and support sectors most vulnerable to economic, social and health challenges posed by the global Covid-19 pandemic.
European Commission international partnerships director-general Koen Doens says the Boost Africa initiative shows how Africa and the EU can work together to build a more prosperous future, by mobilising the younger generations. “Young African entrepreneurial talent is thriving.”
He says Boost Africa is designed to help the two continents in two ways. First, by supporting financially their business projects and also accompanying them in the difficult process from design to implementation.
“We see opportunities in many different innovative sectors, from health to sustainable energy and digitalisation, many of them critical in the context of the Covid-19 crisis.”
Doens adds that, overall, the contribution to Boost Africa is a “great example” of the European Commission’s Team Europe approach – bringing in all EU forces and partnering with local institutions to make the biggest impact in Africa.
DRIVING THE WAY FORWARD
OACPS secretary-general Georges Chikoti says that scaling up specialised financing is essential to grow business skills and drive innovation across Africa.
Over recent years, he adds that Boost Africa has contributed to improved financing and providing much needed hands-on support to future African business leaders.
“The new OACPS-EU contribution to Boost Africa seeks to enhance the competitiveness of our private sector at a time of unprecedented challenges as a result of the uncertainty generated by the Covid-19 pandemic,” says Chikoti.
EIB VP Ambroise Fayolle says the new EU and OACPS support for Boost Africa will scale up activity by specialist funds across the continent, unlock involvement by new investors and allow new fund partners to participate.
“Together Team Europe and African partners are ensuring that Boost Africa makes an even bigger difference in the years ahead,” he says.
Since its launch in November 2016, Boost Africa has supported high-impact investment across Africa by venture capital partners based in Dakar, Abidjan, Nairobi, Lagos and Tunis.
Boost Africa has helped African innovation companies involved in agribusiness, fintech, e-commerce and cybersecurity to expand.
The AfDB’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Lab, part of Boost Africa’s technical assistance support, has identified and delivered support to 1 080 business organisations and trained 3 267 business owners from 32 African countries.
Boost Africa has also backed investment in nature conservation, climate technology, domestic tourism and food security.