Stellenbosch University has received an R4 million donation to establish the Centre for African Entrepreneurship, which will investigate ways to foster high-impact entrepreneurship on the African continent.
The Allan Gray Centre for African Entrepreneurship, as it will be known, aims to promote entrepreneurial innovation and growth across the African continent. The funding was provided by Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies, an organisation dedicated to fostering responsible entrepreneurship for the common good and envisioning a thriving African citizenry.
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The primary focus of the centre will be on creating an environment conducive to high-impact entrepreneurship. It is envisioned as a Pan-African intellectual project, spanning countries such as South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia, where Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies already have investments in existing entrepreneurship ecosystem partners.
The centre will explore strategic partnerships with institutions like Ashesi University in Ghana, Strathmore University in Kenya, the Ministry of ICT and Innovation in Rwanda, the Ministry of Innovation and Technology in Ethiopia and the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor in South Africa.
Professor Wim de Villiers, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of Stellenbosch University, expressed enthusiasm for the centre’s potential to make a significant societal impact.
‘By doing research that can help resolve unemployment, poverty and inequality, the centre will contribute to transforming Africa’s numerous youth from a demographic liability to a human resource dividend,’ he said.
Professor Ingrid Woolard, Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, emphasised the importance of entrepreneurship as a driver of economic growth and job creation, particularly in Africa with its large influx of young people entering the labour market each year.
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‘This centre will focus on the science and practise of entrepreneurship – what can be done to provide the right conditions to allow entrepreneurs to flourish’ explained Professor Woolard.
Anthony Farr, CEO of Allan & Gill Gray Africa, highlighted the centre’s role in developing intellectual rigour around entrepreneurship in Africa. He said that, by gaining deeper insight into the realities of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial ecosystems on the continent, the centre aims to contribute to progress and prosperity for all.
Initially, the centre will focus on research and postgraduate studies, with plans to offer formal teaching programmes in the coming years. Dr Phumlani Nkontwana and Professor Erik Stam will serve as co-directors of the centre, bringing their extensive knowledge and experience in the entrepreneurial sector.
Dr Nkontwana specialises in entrepreneurship and has managed notable entrepreneurship funds, promoting Pan-African entrepreneurship among young individuals from various parts of the continent. Professor Stam, an extraordinary professor at Stellenbosch University and a professor at Utrecht University School of Economics, is a renowned scholar in entrepreneurial ecosystems and entrepreneurship-led development.
Dr Nkontwana expressed hope that the centre would inspire the establishment of a greater number of high-impact ventures headquartered or co-founded in Africa.
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‘Our hope is to inspire the quantity and concentration of high-impact ventures, either headquartered or co-founded in Africa,’ he said.
According to Professor Zwelinzima Ndevu, director of the School of Public Leadership (SPL), the centre is expected to be operational by August 2023 and will be strategically located at the SPL. The aim is to facilitate collaboration between public and private entities in nurturing a new generation of African entrepreneurs who will drive economic transformation and growth.
Ultimately, the Centre for African Entrepreneurship aims to make its generated knowledge accessible to local innovation hubs and ventures that need it most, contributing to the development and success of African entrepreneurship.
‘In earnest, we will ultimately endeavour to make available and consumable generated knowledge to local innovation hubs and ventures that need it the most,’ Dr Nkontwana concluded.
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