Innovation and entrepreneurship critical to sustainable development

Lazarus Sauti

Jean Claude Bastos, founder of the African Innovation Foundation and the Innovation Prize for Africa, says the continent of Africa has enjoyed 15 years of sustained economic growth, yet there are signs that this growth has not resulted in robust growth of good jobs.

Bastos, also an internationally active entrepreneur and investor, further said there are concerns that the rapid economic growth has not translated to rapid poverty reduction in the continent.

“Africa has the lowest responsiveness of poverty reduction to economic growth of any of the worlds developing regions despite 15 years of sustained economic growth,” he says, adding that “while six of the 10 fastest-growing economies in the world are in sub-Saharan Africa, the unemployment figures are startling.”

According to the World Bank, a United Nations international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes, youth account for 60 per cent of all unemployed Africans.

This means the continent will need to create some 95-million new jobs by 2020, and another 160-million by 2030, to absorb all the new entrants to their labour markets.

For Africa to realise sustained development, a new thinking cap, therefore, needs to be put on, and this should take in innovation and entrepreneurship.

Dr. Muazu Babangida Aliyu, senior civil servant in Nigeria, agrees that innovation and entrepreneurship are critical ingredients for the regeneration and empowerment of grassroot people for economic transformation and national development.

Barr. Abbas Bello, believer in technology, underscores the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship, describing them as key drivers for national and socio-economic development.

“There is evidence based consensus on the critical role of science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship as the key drivers of national social and economic development,” he says.

Not to be outdone, Omobola Johnson, Nigerian technocrat, says innovation and entrepreneurship are cornerstones of economic growth. “A country’s ability to innovate has become an indicator of the progress it is making towards improving the quality of life of her citizens,” she adds.

This means African countries should embrace innovation and entrepreneurship to reconfigure economies and create new markets and opportunities that African youth can capitalise on.

However, Africa’s youth need to be equipped with skills and know how that will help them create their own job market and not merely enter the job market.

Bastos says since governments alone cannot win this battle, participation from public and private organisations is of paramount importance. “I believe there is a greater need for the public and private sector to form a symbiotic relationship that will help create the African innovation ecosystem, which our youth can leverage. The private sector should be wisely incentivised to support this process.

“We need to invest in institutional infrastructure that helps national and transcontinental networks of investors, researchers, manufacturers, and customers come together to create new markets, new industries, and new jobs around innovative technologies and business models that are relevant to Africa.”

Bastos also asserts that research institutions, business firms, venture capitalists, policy makers and funding agencies need to pool resources and find ways of increasing economic output, thinking of new ways to get more output from the same input, finding ways to introduce new or efficiently enhanced products (goods or services), processes, organisational methods, and marketing methods in internal business practices and the marketplace.

Africa needs skilled and empowered people who can create the kind of jobs the innovation economy demands.

Furthermore, to be competitive in the 21^st century, the continent needs to first identify the unique natural potential of African countries, and then invest in fundamental scientific research and development that supports real innovation within these sectors.

Countries within and across the African continent should, without fail, craft policies and strategies that would benefit the ‘grassroots’ – the majority of whom live in rural areas and make up most of the poor was a clear imperative for the nation.

After crafting and implementing policies, responsible ministries and critical players in the science and technology fraternity in the continent must also embarked on extensive media campaign to sensitise the populace and create awareness for the policies.

Frankly, for the continent of Africa to have rapid and sustained poverty reduction, youth must be equipped in engaging with the 21^st century innovation dynamics that will shape Africa’s economic future, and for this to transpire, leaders must first and foremost create instruments that enable countries to capture the actual and future needs of our African youth.