Omidyar Network And Monitor Group Reveal Initial Results Of Accelerating Entrepreneurship In Africa Survey

Omidyar Network And Monitor Group Reveal Initial Results Of Accelerating Entrepreneurship In Africa Survey PR Newswire ACCRA, Ghana, Oct. 11, 2012 - Survey shows cause for optimism, but many challenges lie ahead ACCRA, Ghana, Oct. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Entrepreneurship is gaining credibility as a vocation in Africa, but it continues to face significant challenges, according to a new study sponsored by Omidyar Network and conducted by Monitor Group. The "Accelerating Entrepreneurship in Africa" survey found 57% of respondents consider becoming an entrepreneur a desirable career choice. The findings signal the presence of an important condition necessary for high- impact entrepreneurship to thrive in Africa: No longer is being an entrepreneur solely a decision of necessity, but one of aspiration. Tebogo Skwambane, managing partner of the Monitor Group Johannesburg, presented the results at Omidyar Network's Entrepreneurship in Africa Summit in Accra, Ghana on Wednesday, 10 October. The survey also identified significant barriers to fostering an environment in which high-impact entrepreneurship can thrive. A lack of access to financing, inadequate infrastructure, insufficient skills training, limited affordable and accessible business support services and burdensome administrative policies were among the obstacles included in the survey findings. Sixty percent of respondents held that the cost of capital hinders company formation and growth.