By:
Robert Kwaku Annor
Sierra Leone's
entrepreneurship support organisations have begun consultations towards
establishing an independent, member-led national association as the Government
works to strengthen the country's entrepreneurship ecosystem and advance the
Startup Act process.
The Ministry of
Communication, Technology and Innovation, Felei TechCity and the International
Trade Centre, through the Ready Salone Project supported by KOICA Nigeria
Office, concluded a two-day engagement with entrepreneurship support
organisations at Mamba Point, Lagoonda.
The engagement focused on
strengthening the enabling environment for entrepreneurship, including proposed
classifications and standards for organisations supporting entrepreneurs.
On the first day,
stakeholders reviewed proposed classifications covering incubators,
accelerators, investment-readiness and enterprise development providers.
Discussions examined what entrepreneurs, investors and partners should expect
from different categories of support organisations, with the aim of developing
categories that reflect their work and credible standards that do not exclude
promising newcomers.
The second day focused on
how entrepreneurship support organisations could organise themselves.
InnovationSL presented a proposal for an independent, member-led national
association intended to address fragmented consultation, uneven service quality
and weak referral pathways.
The proposal was presented
as an invitation for stakeholders to co-design the structure, with no
Government endorsement, funding or mandate attached. Participants were given
the opportunity to define the proposed association, make changes or reject
aspects of the proposal.
The consultation marks the
first step in a process that will be guided by the ecosystem's views on
membership, governance and representation, including the participation of
organisations outside Freetown.
Professor Kim also presented
policy recommendations aimed at supporting a stronger environment for
entrepreneurs.
Felei TechCity convened the
process as a neutral platform, while the Government's role remains focused on
regulation and enabling rather than management of the proposed structure.
Any association that emerges
from the process is expected to be designed, governed and led by its members
and represent organisations of different sizes across Freetown and beyond. The
Government's support does not depend on an association being formed.
"What eventually
emerges must belong to the ecosystem," said David E M Manley, CEO of the
Felei TechCity project.
