I am often asked the question ‘what surprised me most when I came to the US?’ My answer would be the similarities. I have been struck by how entrepreneurs or farmers from Uttar Pradesh, Mauritius or the US face similar challenges in their day to day struggle to make a daily livelihood of their trade.
For everyone there is supply and demand cycles that makes income generation precarious. No farmer or small entrepreneur wants to deal with loans, they all prefer grants. For all farmers, transport is a problem, whether it is the fact that there are no roads between the pineapple farm and the market or that the nearest mill is a hundred miles away. For all of them fees and regulations are problems.
Government departments around the world make regulations that are well intended; unfortunately these cause discontent as it adds a burden to the enterprise. The doing business unit of the World Bank, has helped many countries around the world reform their way of doing business and address some of these regulatory problems. Countries have engaged in tedious reforms to strengthen their business sector.
Besides difficult reform process there are other ways to promote businesses. An example is the Massachusetts Latino Chamber of Commerce, in Springfield. The chamber of commerce hosts incubators for small businesses and provides technical assistance to its members.
As I compare and contrast my experience around the world, I would like to explore further how the setting up of business incubators around countries in Africa can further boost entrepreneurship across the continent.
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