African Diaspora starting up in Africa: mapping of the start-up ecosystem for and needs among the African diaspora entrepreneurs in Belgium

Encouraging and supporting entrepreneurship in Africa has received increasing attention from various quarters in recent years. Numerous initiatives are popping up in Belgium to get Belgian entrepreneurs excited about the African market. There is positive economic growth in the Sub-Saharan region and some 10 Sub-Saharan countries had economic growth of more than 5% in 2018 which is higher than most European countries.

This growing African economy is also a strong pull factor for the African Diaspora in Belgium. The idea of starting a business in the country of origin is increasingly alive within this community, among other things as an alternative to remittances. In recent years, several organisations and initiatives have emerged in Belgium to support African Diaspora entrepreneurs in this regard.

However, this very dynamic and changing support system also has a downside. Supporting organisations are not always aware of what is currently on offer and there is no general overview of the startup ecosystem for African diaspora entrepreneurs. Moreover, there is no understanding of the drivers, needs and challenges African diaspora entrepreneurs experience when starting a business in their country of origin. In addition, policymakers, especially in international development cooperation, want to engage African diaspora more. This is in line with a recent shift within development cooperation to focus more on job creation and simulating local entrepreneurship.

The aim of this research project is to map the current startup ecosystem for African diaspora entrepreneurs in Belgium both here and in the home country. In addition, this ecosystem will be measured against the needs of those entrepreneurs in order to identify gaps in the current support system and formulate recommendations for the different stakeholders on this basis.