New business in Africa to get help from a pool of experts

 

A tobacco farmer tends his farm. BAT is training farmers on tending their tobacco crop and afforestation to boost quality and quantity. Photo/FILE  Nation Media Group

By STEVE MBOGO Special Correspondent

In Summary

• Under the VC4Africa’s new mentorship marketplace project, entrepreneurs looking for advice to grow their businesses will get direct access to a pool of business experts from around the world.
• The new online mentorship project is part of entrepreneurship laboratories gaining prominence on the continent to build the next generation of African entrepreneurs.

Budding entrepreneurs in Africa will now benefit from the fundraising skills of experts through an online mentorship project recently launched by Venture Capital for Africa (VC4Africa).

Apparently, most start-ups miss out on funding because of the failure to present adequate information in their business plans to potential investors.

Under the VC4Africa’s new mentorship marketplace project, entrepreneurs looking for advice to grow their businesses will get direct access to a pool of business experts from around the world.

Entrepreneurs can add “mentor requests” that are visible, searchable and actionable by a pool of registered mentors. Business experts experienced in starting companies or with experience in a specific relevant field can sign up as a VC4Africa Mentor and provide feedback to promising entrepreneurs all across Africa.

The project is still recruiting entrepreneurs with experience in starting companies or with experience in a specific relevant field to be matched with people requiring mentorship assistance. After a match is made, the dialogue between mentor and entrepreneur may take place via whichever channel is most suitable for them.

However, mentors who are accepted by entrepreneurs are not expected to write entire business plans, negotiate with investors or assume a management role in a company.

Konstantin Makarov, partner and director of Stralink Africa, a financial consulting company that advises corporations on international risk mitigation said most business plans targeting investors from the West for instance, fail to present actionable information making the investors shy away from such investments.

“More of investors in the West want actionable information about opportunities in Africa, which they can use to make business decisions. It is therefore up to those operating in Africa to make businesses ready to qualify and benefit from this foreign capital,” he said.

The new online mentorship project is part of entrepreneurship laboratories gaining prominence on the continent to build the next generation of African entrepreneurs.

“The objective of the mentorship programme is to assist promising entrepreneurs in establishing and building great companies. It’s a peer-to-peer approach and an open culture of learning and sharing,” said VC4Africa in a statement. The mentor marketplace draws on an international network of business experts that dedicate their time, network and expertise free of charge.

“When an entrepreneur faces a challenge, we are convinced there are members within the VC4Africa network who have the answers and are willing to lend their insight, expertise and experience,” said the statement.

VC4Africa is an online peer-to-peer exchange between entrepreneurs and venture capitalists that provides African companies in need of $10,000 to $1 million funding range with a new platform to fundraise.

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The platform has 10,000 registered users including some of the most prominent private equity companies in the continent and has screened more than 1,000 entrepreneurs from over 30 African countries.

VC4Africa’s own research shows 45 per cent of Africa’s entrepreneurs who registered on VC4Africa are looking for mentorship. 20 per cent of the members have currently engaged in VC4Africa’s mentorship activities.