We can not be born under the same star.
Unlike their Western and Asian counterparts, African technopreneurs (technology entrepreneurs) must at all times cope with the lack of infrastructure, lack of means and lack of concise examples. And all these also add to the general the unstable political situations in most of our countries.
But human capital is what makes the difference.
We all know that man, in general, is likely to adapt to his environment. It is, therefore, just question of how Africans can develop and implement their ingenuity in an atmosphere which seems gravely hostile to entrepreneurship to create a real universal value.
African entrepreneurs must embrace the fact that it takes time and real work to get good results.
Are we asking the right questions? Do we compare ourselves to the right people? These are questions that can lead one to surround himself with competent people. Can what happened in Silicon Valley (California) be reproduced in Africa if men and women with complementary skills set the same goals.
Around the world, it is the same tools and software that are used to create applications, website and online services. So there is no excuse for mediocrity when it comes to “know how” and especially the “know how to handle.”
Technopreneurs in Africa must avoid the urge to reinvent the wheel when it comes to production or process development processes. For these things have already proven themselves elsewhere and been improved by experience and feedback only.
There is no shame in copying, the Western world and other developed countries have already made mistakes in the past. These errors have given birth to principles and other design patterns in many areas of business including technology and human resources management.
Finally, something that is undoubtedly cultural and that we should work to solve in Africa, “short-termism”. African entrepreneurs must embrace the fact that it takes time and real work to get good results.
They must plan their adventures over several years and improve their working methods over time because no giant is born overnight.
Originally published at senaquashie.com on September 22, 2016.