Calling all schools, universities, accelerators, individuals, and youth organisations that are invested in reducing youth unemployment on the African continent.
For the past 10 years, the Anzisha Prize has worked at the intersection of the established secondary education sector and an emerging entrepreneurship ecosystem, and we have found a clear gap – transition support from one to the other.
Drawing from lessons over these years, the team, in collaboration with the Mastercard Foundation has released an impact report titled Unlocking Africa’s Hidden Job Creators: Lessons from ten years of supporting transitions from education to entrepreneurship in Africa. The report highlights 11 key lessons learned that inform how early-career entrepreneurs can be supported. Careful to avoid market denialism, the program sheds light on challenges within the entrepreneurship movement on the continent, including cultural aversion, weak education systems, unsupportive regulation and a lack of market access.
“Our research and data over the last 10 years have proven that very young African entrepreneurs are exceptional at creating work opportunities for other youth,” comments Josh Adler, Executive Director of the Anzisha Prize. “We’re excited to share critical lessons that will inform the future of supporting young entrepreneurs and hopefully amplify how we as a continent tackle the future of work.
The report provides focus on supporting the transition from secondary school to entrepreneurship. Addressing various stakeholders –educators, parents, investors, policymakers, incubators within the youth entrepreneurship ecosystem –the report offers a guide on how a coordinated movement of these key influencers can change the trajectory of entrepreneurship on the continent for young people and see the creation of one million dignified work opportunities by 2030.
Here’s a snippet of the Lesson 1:
Ready to dive into the rest of the lessons?
Read the report here or watch the YouTube breakdown of each lesson here.
