Despite being the world’s second fastest-growing region, Africa’s challenge is translating this growth into broad-based improvements in well-being. SMEs development is key to change this.

Is the current recovery policy for the financial and economic crises in the Eurozone a genuine answer for the complexity and diversity of the problems that all member states face? Not really. The responses are too one-sided and mainly export and austerity driven. In particular, the current policy ignores the fact that the euro crisis is a systemic crisis that cannot be overcome with more of the same.

Although 90% of businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa’s markets are small and medium enterprises (SMEs), they do not play a significant role in current GDP growth. However, SMEs can lead a much-needed economic diversification, explore new sectors and become the drivers of inclusive growth.

Despite deep-rooted criticism of the private equity industry, the private equity model is increasingly being used as an instrument for sustainable growth of the private sector in developing countries. SMEs are no exception.

A “good business environment” has been cited over and over as a decisive factor for SME development. Yet upgrading a micro enterprise to a small or medium-sized business requires a lot more than that, argue Caroline Reeg and Markus Loewe.

Social entrepreneurship is growing fast. However, its success depends on more than quantity alone. Isolated social enterprises cannot deliver impact beyond the microeconomic scale. They need to be part of a broader system and aware of the different layers behind local problems to become more influential and successfully increase impact as change agents.