ENRICH in Africa featured on Science|Business
The Ecosystem: Africa and Europe connect on innovation - How EiA built links between accelerators, incubators and start-ups in Europe and Africa shows the potential for benefit on both sides. A centre in Cape Town will now continue its work.
The EU has a long history of research cooperation with Africa, but has only recently turned its attention to innovation cooperation. The challenge has been to find a way of working that is mutually beneficial, rather than reproducing the one-sided relationships typical in development aid projects.
The conclusion this year of the ‘Enrich in Africa’ project, which set out to connect innovation ecosystems in Europe and Africa, is one sign that a successful way forward may have been found. Its approach, and the community it has built, will now be taken forward by the Enrich in Africa Centre, based in Cape Town.
“I think the biggest prize for both regions is understanding each other, and each other’s markets, removing the preconceptions that stand in the way of people working together,” said Zandile Ntuli, manager of the centre. “The next benefit is market access, so that solutions are shared equally.”
There is also the possibility of closing the gap for innovations moving at different speeds in Africa and Europe. For example, mobile money has developed rapidly in Africa, while Europe has focused heavily on deep tech.
“The innovations that make it, make it because the market needs them, and that is the same in Africa and Europe,” Ntuli said. “But there is something to be learned in Africa about how innovations succeed against the odds, in some cases when very little infrastructure is in place because the market needs them so much.”
For the EU, these initiatives take place in a wider policy agenda that aims to redefine the relationship between Europe and Africa. “The aim has been to change the paradigm from development aid to cooperation, which is in line with the 2019 EU-Africa Strategy,” said a Commission official.
A dedicated strategy for innovation was set out in the EU-African Union innovation agenda, endorsed by both parties in July 2023. “The idea is to translate research and innovation endeavours into tangible products and services, that create business and jobs in Africa and in Europe,” the official said.