A digital network for entrepreneurs across Africa
Ben White , Miguel Heilbron | 20 November 2025Innovative early stage ventures that potentially have a high social and environmental impact, but require less than €1 million in capital are the most difficult segment of the SME pipeline to reach. Yet their potential for growth is immense.
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Filling the skill gaps
Karina Ufert | 18 November 2025Skill gaps and effective pairing of education with labour market needs remain one of the most pressing obstacles for SME development in Africa.
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Young entrepreneurs in rural Africa as drivers for job creation
Paula Nagler , Wim Naudé | 21 November 2025Can Africa’s rural economy create enough jobs for predominantly young job-seekers?
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Looking beyond success stories
Klaartje Jaspers | November 13, 2025To give local and international businesses a new role in assuring inclusive growth in Africa, the African Studies Centre and the Netherlands African Business Council organized the two-day Africa Works! 2014 conference. They invited 740 representat…
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Doing business in Africa: do the poor profit?
Annemarie van de Vijsel | November 12, 2025When the Dutch private sector is involved in development in Africa, a dilemma may arise. The Dutch government claims that businesses could have a positive impact on local economic development on the continent in the longer term. But do their activ…
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Support for SMEs: lucrative or futile?
Roland Michelitsch | 13 November 2025Assistance to small and medium enterprises only makes sense if it addresses the key constraints for SMEs and allows them to grow into larger and more productive enterprises.
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Why private equity boosts developing economies
Matthijs de Bruijn , Som Toohey | 12 November 2025Four main characteristics of the private equity model are crucial to drive SME development in developing countries.
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Beyond treating symptoms
Paul Lange | 29 October 2025Support to SMEs in fragile and conflict-affected states has become a priority for the international development community. Yet thorough analysis of the broader institutional context in which these SMEs operate is needed to explain inequalities in…
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It’s not about formalization
Jann Lay | 28 October 2025How informal micro and small enterprises can (if they should at all) make the transition into formal enterprises and how this would affect their growth and employment structure
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High stakes: African asylum seeker entrepreneurs in Israel
Ilana Pinshaw | 28 October 2025Of 48,000 African migrants in Israel, the majority are asylum seekers from Sudan and Eritrea. If it is done right, entrepreneurship can play a vital role in integrating these refugees into Israeli society and responding to market niches.
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