Think and act for entrepreneurship in Africa

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The articles in this category allow the audience to have a better understanding of different topics related to African entrepreneurship: the economic or political context, social issues, etc.

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Insights Perspectives

Investing in the exceptional African creativity

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Africa intrigues and inspires the world. Some recent examples prove it: the Gucci Summer 2019 collection; the Dior cruise 2019 collection, inspired by African fashion with some fabrics printed in…

Africa intrigues and inspires the world. Some recent examples prove it: the Gucci Summer 2019 collection; the Dior cruise 2019 collection, inspired by African fashion with some fabrics printed in Côte d’Ivoire; the Milan fashion week 2021 opened by the Fab Five, five designers from Africa. And so on.

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Acceleration programs: a miracle solution for early-stage companies? (1/2)

Salgatech © Olympia de Maismont (2021)

Capitalizing on the boom of Africa’s entrepreneurial revolution, official development assistance (ODA) actors are increasingly taking on the challenge of supporting new generations of entrepreneurs willing to contribute to job…

Capitalizing on the boom of Africa’s entrepreneurial revolution, official development assistance (ODA) actors are increasingly taking on the challenge of supporting new generations of entrepreneurs willing to contribute to job creation and the emergence of more inclusive growth on the African continent. It is in this context that programs, initiatives and structures claiming to “accelerate” businesses have emerged in recent years. 

Note: Part 2 of this article, spotlighting an Ivorian company supported by an acceleration program, will be published next week.

Acceleration: A promising concept for African startups

When it comes to entrepreneurship, acceleration is defined as a service that provides mentoring, networking, and sometimes funding, to growing companies. However, the term is used to refer to a wide variety of very different programs. These include “accelerators” and start-up studios (such as GSMA Kenya and Flat6Labs Egypt), which are often physical or virtual structures that focus on digital economy (1) start-ups and are typically located in English-speaking countries, as well as investment funds that define themselves as booster programs (such as Catalyst Fund and Janngo) and/or that develop a range of acceleration program services to diversify their portfolios.

These programs are mainly funded by international organizations and private donors (e.g., West African Trade Investment, funded by USAID; Orange Corners, funded by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency).

In a globalized context where virtual support is widely available, international accelerators, in the US, Latin America, and Europe, are assisting more and more African startups. Before 2020, the renowned North American Y Combinator had only provided on-site support to 12 African startups—a figure that has tripled in the last two years.

An insufficient offering given the needs of entrepreneurs

This apparent plethora of acceleration programs gives the impression that the needs of African early-stage companies have now been met. This misleading impression is strengthened by the growing numbers of venture capital fundraising exclusively targeting IT startups in a limited number of African countries (Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt.

The number of start-ups across the continent that need assistance in the acceleration phase or upstream during the incubation phase is significant; whereas the range of seed financing (pre-seed/seed) is almost nonexistent if we look at the ratio of funds to the number of entrepreneurs. The financial and non-financial support granted must cover both general and specific needs, and therefore requires time, locally rooted expertise and a personalized calibration/analysis of a business’s needs. Accelerating a company’s growth does not mean accelerating the time required for its development.

Unfortunately, most programs funded by ODAs are not properly structured to overcome the gap between the time/support required for each entrepreneur and the number of targeted beneficiaries. Often these programs are unwilling or unable to assume the real cost of coaching each company and therefore take the risk of acting only superficially/provide only superficial assistance. Implementation resources are limited since there are inexhaustible reserves of new entrepreneurs to support whose scaling up problems  cannot be solved exclusively by a generalist approach.

The apparent profusion of acceleration programs is misleading: the number of startups that need support across the continent is considerable and the supply of seed funding is still largely insufficient.

Draw inspiration and deploy good practices

Since there is still a lot to do to guarantee the development of African entrepreneurship, the experience accumulated in recent years by acceleration program actors make it possible to identify a few “good practices” that could be deployed on a larger scale:

(1) The segmentation of programs is an added value

Every acceleration program must consider the fact that the term “start-up” includes companies that have nothing in common, either in terms of their business or location, and as such, require differentiated support. Segmentation adds significant value as it allows acceleration/support programs to more quickly identify issues and address challenges common to a particular business/company; a Sahelian SME in the agribusiness sector, for example, will have different support needs than a Nigerian e-commerce startup. Segmentation benefits also to programs that favor a virtual and grouped approach but which have difficulty obtaining the expected results with audiences that are too diverse.

Sectoral programs, such as those dedicated to agribusinesses (e.g., the PCESA financed by Danish cooperation in Burkina Faso) or initiatives focused on gender (Access Bank Nigeria’s W Initiative…) are more likely to identify the particular challenges of businesses and better understand regional equity issues (urban, rural, etc.). In the same way, results are achieved when the support continuum has been well thought out. Incubation in particular is not interchangeable with acceleration, as the needs of companies may differ from one phase to another (2).

(2) Greater impact is achieved by training local intermediary actors essential to the development of entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurship support structures (SAE) in particular, independent experts and consultants be able to find their market beyond punctual aid from donors (3) . It is by contributing to the local skills development of African professionals that a greater number of companies will be able to scale up. In addition to Afric’innov, whose primary mission is in French-speaking African countries, a few financial players have recently attempted to fill this blind spot in their program offerings. Examples include the collaboration between Argidius and Village Capital, who have been working since 2020 to help structure SAEs in Uganda (Uganda Ecosystem Builders), and the work of mentoring and then financing SAEs carried out by Triple Jump and its experts in Sub-Saharan Africa.

(3) Acceleration programs that provide a complementary set of tools are more effective

First, appropriate seed funding tools, which specifically take into account a company’s lack of financial management skills and habits, can take the form of a repayable advance, as currently practiced by I&P Acceleration in the Sahel (IPAS). An advance lays the groundwork for a relationship with a financier and will probably make it possible to financially support more SMEs through the effect of recycling money (4).

Secondly, we can use skill-building tools that alternate between generalist support (to aim at disseminating entrepreneurial skills as widely as possible) and targeted support (venture building, technical assistance). The technical support provided to a company is just as determinant as the financial support. Y Combinator’s alumni agree that their growth is more due to technical support than to the initial financing, even if the financing gives more weight to the advice given.

Although the scarcity of seed funding is a significant obstacle, support, through skills building and technical assistance, is just as crucial as seed funding.

General skill building (group trainings, bootcamps and workshops, webinars, etc.) is often valued by funders, but technical assistance is largely absent from many acceleration programs. Technical assistance, i.e., contracting with local sector experts (legal, commercial, technological, managerial, etc.), is critical to improving the performance of companies during the absorption of seed financing and the development of traction. Technical assistance is an eminently relevant tool when it is implemented by an investor who wishes to strengthen the enterprise where he perceives risks that would not be detected by other types of actors. Most acceleration programs that include the deployment of technical assistance produce net results: this is the case, for example, with GreenTec Capital’s Boost Digital, which offers technical assistance in business and digital strategy and significantly increases the revenues of its beneficiary startups.

Some traps to avoid

Program funders still face many challenges to increasing the impact of their programs. It will inevitably be necessary to move away from the “all-startup” scheme to support “brick and mortar” SMEs as well and to rethink the establishment of support over time, taking into account that the phases of increasing skills are costly but necessary in order to meet demanding results indicators. It is also important to recognize that high failure rates at the outset are normal given the high initial risks involved, during the time when a company must deploy its offerings, prove itself and find its market. If the company survives, thanks in part to acceleration, then the risks, the need for liquidity and the need for competence (…) all decrease simultaneously.

We must also avoid the model of ephemeral competition and challenges, unless we are clear about their purpose (brand testing, visibility, etc.) and encourage a little more in-depth research work for “nuggets” and summoning patience and local relays in the process of selecting companies outside the circuits known to “serial pitchers”. The implementation of programs designed in Africa, involving African public and private stakeholders, favoring local financial risk-taking (e.g., business angels, African entrepreneurs, especially alumni of acceleration programs wishing to invest) is becoming essential.

In conclusion, we can hope that the enthusiasm of DFIs, international donors and African private actors for acceleration programs will continue and lead to the realization of ambitious aspirations: to strengthen young companies and create intermediary bridges/pathways to capital investment for those with clear development projects. Such a dynamic is inseparable from a broader reflection on the programs that exist further upstream from acceleration (ideation or incubation programs). The quality of our tools must be continually questioned in order to adapt them as closely as possible to the changing issues that growing African companies face.

Notes :

(1) An overview of the so-called gas pedal structures is available on the Afrikan Heroes and CrunchBase websites https://afrikanheroes.com/2021/05/29/a-list-of-startup-accelerators-in-africa/ https://www.crunchbase.com/hub/africa-accelerators and in the Briter Bridges 2020 & 2021 reports

(2) Cf étude AFD-Roland Berger « Innovation en Afrique et dans les pays émergents » https://www.afd.fr/sites/afd/files/2018-05-05-57-55/etude-innovation-numerique-afrique-pays-emergents.pdf

(3) On this subject, see the studies and experiments currently being conducted in Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville and Chad by actors such as R.M.D.A or the Agro-PME Foundation to implement the use of service vouchers, a useful tool for training and accreditation of consultants, etc. https://www.rmda-group.com/project/tchad-appui-a-la-maitrise-douvrage-du-projet-dappui-a-la-petite-entreprise-phase-2 https://www.adiac-congo.com/content/pme-le-guichet-cheque-services-bientot-operationnel-32125

(4) The repayable advance and its effects will be the subject of an article in this Acceleration file.

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Supporting private firms in Africa: Why and how?

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Beyond the declarations of intent regularly renewed at international summits, we must finally scale up to massively finance SMEs in Africa, to spur private sector development and thus meet the…

Beyond the declarations of intent regularly renewed at international summits, we must finally scale up to massively finance SMEs in Africa, to spur private sector development and thus meet the challenge of better development of the continent.

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The case for informal bonds

© ACEP Cameroun, Béchir Malum

This article argues for the implementation of an alternative financing mechanism for informal small and very small businesses in Africa that would allow them to benefit from other formal financing…

This article argues for the implementation of an alternative financing mechanism for informal small and very small businesses in Africa that would allow them to benefit from other formal financing opportunities under better conditions than those offered to them today.

 

A review of current funding mechanisms

African economies today are still predominantly financed by the banking sector, which carries the disadvantage of elevating the banker to the status of a sort of multi-sector specialist who groups entrepreneurs in various sectors such as the agri-food, energy, consulting, and even new technology sectors, into the same single portfolio.

Private equity investors focus almost exclusively on large deals in order to ensure the monitoring of their investments (although fortunately some of them have oriented their investment strategies towards small and medium-sized businesses).

Microfinance institutions, whose success is due to a financing model adapted to small-size loans and small companies, but unfortunately carries some significant drawbacks, including the application of high interest rates.

We could also mention meso-finance, which is quite new and essentially functions as an intermediary between traditional banking and micro-bank financing. Nano-credits, which are generally below 100,000 FCFA, are offered by some Fintechs but are still quite rare.

Finally, an informal and parallel financing system has been created which is a sort of “street financing”
system that applies predatory interest rates and abusive loan terms and requires, among other things, the borrower’s debit card as a guarantee.

This overview of existing financing mechanisms makes one thing clear: the informal sector, which according to the International Labor Organization represents more than 85% of jobs on the African continent, has been completely left behind. It is therefore necessary to develop an alternative financing mechanism to cater to this vital segment of our economy.

The overview of existing financing mechanisms makes one thing clear: the informal sector, which represents more than 85% of jobs on the African continent, has been completely left behind.

 

The informal sector as a life raft

The informal economy constitutes a veritable life raft for the vast majority of Africans. In the case of Europe, this life raft is characterized by each state’s social welfare model, and each country has defined a minimum wage that allows every worker to provide for the basic needs of his or her family.

In Africa, this life raft is characterized by one’s informal activities. The public administration employee who earns 65,000 CFA francs per month (100 €) and who has 6 children to support, will need to develop an additional activity in the informal sector in order to make ends meet and feed his or her family.

Financing our informal sector, therefore, amounts to financing our social welfare network. The informal sector simply cannot remain the forgotten or poorly equipped part of our economy that it is today.

Today, the African financial market should represent hope, an option, through the inclusion of informal entrepreneurship. Each player in our economic network should be able to access an opportunity through this financial market.

This is why we are calling for the implementation of a new product, which we could refer to as “informal bonds”.

Each player in our economic network should be able to access an opportunity through this financial market.

 

What are informal bonds?

According to the International Monetary Fund (2017), the informal sector represents between 20% (South Africa) and 65% (Benin, Nigeria) of the GDP of African countries. Contrary to popular belief, informal does not necessarily mean poorly organized.  In fact, some informal businesses such as planting or motorbike taxi driving, for example, organize as Cooperatives or Groups.

The idea of the informal bond is simply to allow business groups that have historically demonstrated good organization and governance to seek financing for their members through the financial market by issuing what would be called an “informal bond”, a bond dedicated to financing informal business activities.

A group’s leadership would select, thanks to their knowledge of the sector and of their members, the beneficiaries as well as the loan amounts granted to them.

Assuming that the group has previously demonstrated moral probity, it would be possible for all or part of the bond to be guaranteed by a bank or a state guarantee fund.

For security and transparency reasons, loans and repayments would be made directly via “mobile money” transfer between the custodian bank of the operation and the informal entrepreneurs.

 

This concept could encourage the progressive structuring and formalization of informal actors, who would have specific guidelines to follow in order to qualify for this financing mechanism (group membership, record keeping, opening of a mobile money account, etc.) For their part, the States would benefit from an increase in tax revenues.

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A survey of African education institutions: coping with the Covid-19 crisis

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The Covid-19 health crisis has hit the education sector hard, from early childhood to vocational training, with school closures and distance learning. We surveyed some thirty African educational institutions to…

The Covid-19 health crisis has hit the education sector hard, from early childhood to vocational training, with school closures and distance learning. We surveyed some thirty African educational institutions to understand the impacts of the crisis and the coping strategies put in place by those most affected.

 

A brief methodological overview

This article is based on a survey conducted among 36 African educational institutions.

Respondents are mostly based in West Africa (Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin), but also from Cameroon and Madagascar. Respondents operate in a wide variety of business segments: vocational training, higher education, early childhood, primary education, secondary education, Ed-tech (educational technology), and ancillary activities (publishing, printing, etc.).

 

Financing is a key issue

It comes as no surprise that the health crisis presents a significant challenge to the educational institutions surveyed. 53% of them report a negative impact, and 13% have even experienced a shutdown of their activities. The early childhood sector is the most affected by the crisis (See also our article: “Covid-19: what impacts on the early childhood sector?’’)

The main challenge for these institutions is financial, because of the difficulty of recovering school fees during school closures, in addition to the constant cost of school personnel and operations. The cash flow challenge is the one most often mentioned by respondents, ahead of human resources and production challenges, for example [see graph 1]. Nearly 60% of educational institutions have experienced a drop in revenue due to the health crisis.

What are your main challenges today?

The current situation, and in particular the sudden closure of schools, has highlighted the lack of infrastructure adapted to connectivity, at national level but also within educational institutions themselves (lack of equipment, adapted classrooms, etc.).

 

The adaptation to the crisis and the growing role of digital

The sudden closure of schools has forced the vast majority of educational institutions to adapt and rethink their offer and operating methods. Some have even developed a new offer. This is the case of KËR Imagination, which has developed tools for parents to help them accompany their children at home. These changes were undertaken urgently in the context of an unprecedented situation, but could become permanent for 47% of the institutions surveyed.

The most obvious of these changes is the use of digital technology and the development of online learning. 60% of respondents used a digital platform as a response to the challenges of the Covid-19 crisis and the abrupt closure of schools.

We also note that these platforms had to be set up urgently for many educational institutions, which did not have any specific digital tools before the crisis. Multiple challenges had to be overcome: adapting educational content, maintaining student motivation, adapting academic deadlines… [See graph n°2]. It was also necessary to propose innovative solutions to students with connectivity problems and those who could not work from home.

The main challenges in setting up a digital platform

The transition to digital has proven to be very difficult, if not impossible, to implement for some institutions, particularly in early childhood or vocational training, for which distance learning was not an option. Most of these institutions have implemented small groups to ensure social distancing. This answer was efficient but implied a lot of logistics: reorganization of the space, purchase of masks and hydroalcoholic gel, disinfection between each group…

 

What will remain of this emergency adaptation in the medium and long term?

47% of respondents consider that digitalization had a positive impact on the content provided:

  • Digitalization has urged some structures to develop new offers, and thus propose more diversified contents
  • The move to digital technology has made it possible to reach a wider audience, in particular by introducing continuing education offerings that are accessible to professionals (who need great flexibility) and by expanding the geographic scope
  • Digitalization has increased the capacity of training institutions, with less pressure on the physical infrastructure

 

On the other hand, no educational institution plans to use only e-learning in the near future. However, a blended learning model, combining e-learning and in-class learning, could become widespread in a large number of educational institutions [see graph 3].

How do you envisage the future organization of your company?

 

To conclude

⇒ The education sector is strongly affected by the Covid-19 crisis. This is particularly the case for the early childhood sub-sector.

⇒ The main challenge for these institutions is financial, because of the difficulty of recovering school fees during school closures, in addition to the constant cost of school personnel and operations, resulting in a real working capital problem and significant cash flow pressures.

⇒ The current situation, and in particular the sudden closure of schools, has highlighted the lack of infrastructure adapted to connectivity (lack of equipment, adapted classrooms, etc.).

⇒ While digital has been represented several times as a response to the Covid-19 crisis, it should be noted that it does not represent a long-term learning option for these institutions. It is rather blended learning that could become widespread.

⇒ The actors interviewed seem optimistic that the current situation will return to “normal”. Nevertheless, the sector is still mixed on the permanence of the changes made.

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Are mobile phone operators overtaxed in Africa?

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A tax on internet voice calls such as WhatsApp, Skype, and Viber triggered massive protests in Lebanon, which brought down the government a few months later. Several other countries, especially…

A tax on internet voice calls such as WhatsApp, Skype, and Viber triggered massive protests in Lebanon, which brought down the government a few months later. Several other countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa (Uganda, Zambia, Kenya), have raised or tried to raise (Benin)[1] similar taxes. These experiences reflect the difficult choice of States torn between their desire to take advantage of new opportunities for tax revenue while preserving the dynamism of activity and the level of acceptability of telecoms taxes.

In fact, the telecoms sector is one of the most dynamic economic sectors in Africa and still displays significant growth potential. In 2017 subscriber penetration remained low, at around 45% on average in Africa, compared to more than 60% in other developing countries (GSMA intelligence, 2018). These figures suggest that the catch-up is continuing and there is still significant growth (Cariolle J, 2021).

Telecommunication participates in the economic development of countries by reducing transaction costs and improving market efficiency (Aker and Mbiti, 2010).

Where should we place the cursor between promoting economic activity through fiscal measures and collecting tax revenue for public funding purposes? What design should be implemented for this taxation, which today often takes the form of specific taxes[2], like those usually used for alcohol and tobacco?

What should be the level of taxation on mobile phone operators?

In the economic literature, two approaches exist. For some, the limited number of telecommunications operators would allow them to benefit from their operations[3]. Following this logic the tax regime applied to telecommunication should follow the same schema as applied to the extractive industries, thus including, in addition to taxes under the ordinary law regime, special taxes such as mining royalties, surface royalties, or even rent tax, which would enable States to capture a share of the rent.

For others, telecommunications operators participate in the bridging of the digital divide and thus the development of many other sectors of activity, thus justifying potential tax incentives.

With the app https://data.cerdi.uca.fr/telecom/, we were able to estimate the tax burden on the mobile tele­communication sector in 25 African countries.[4] This tax burden encompasses not only standard and special taxes under the control of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) but also fees raised by the national telecommunication Regulatory Agency (RA). We compute the Average Effective Tax Rate (AETR) for a representative mobile network operator, which we call TELCO, using the GSMA Intelligence database.[5] The Average Effective Tax Rate (AETR) represents the share of taxes paid by TELCO in what it produces as cash flow during its operating licence.[6]

The AETR ranges significantly across the 25 countries from 33% in Ethiopia, 35% in Morocco, 97% in DRC, to 118% in Niger with an average of 64%. Ethiopia is an outlier of our sample since the liberalization of its telecommunication sector has not yet been done. Special taxes and fees represent a large share of the AETR illustrating some taxation by regulation and a potential tax competition (a race to the top) between the MoF and the RA.

Telecommunication is generally more taxed than the mining sector.

We compare the AETR of TELCO to that of a representative gold mining firm and a standard firm with similar gross re­turn over the period. The tax burden of the tele­communication sector is higher than that of the mining sector in 15 countries out of the 19 countries for which we have data on the gold mining sector.

The Average Effective Tax Rates of a mobile phone operator, a gold mining project and a standard firm:

Source: Authors.

 

The AETR in the gold mining sector ranges from 31% in Nigeria to 72% in Chad. The average value of AETR is around 46% for the gold mining sector versus 68% for the mobile phone sector. In several countries, the special taxation on telecommunications alone is higher than the total tax burden applied to the mining sector. However the mining sector remains more taxed than a standard economic sector, except in Nigeria.

Higher AETR is associated with lower market penetration and lower Gross National Income (GNI) per capita.

These results are mainly driven by special taxes and fees (Rota Graziosi, Sawadogo, 2020).

AETR and market penetration:

Source: Authors.

 

As well as the level of taxation measured through AETR the form of taxation matters in terms of revenue and telecommunication development. Telecommunication RAs can raise distortionary taxes or fees, as Hausman (1998) emphasized in the case of the US Telecommunication Act of 1996. Alternatively, these correlations may also illustrate that countries with more mobile phone penetration rely less on special taxation. This relationship could result from the more powerful lobbying of MNOs in these countries.

Thus, in most countries on the African continent, the tax burden on the telecommunications sector is much heavier than that on the gold mining sector and on the standard sectors of activity without special taxation. This is a counter-productive practice that must be stopped.

To go further: https://data.cerdi.uca.fr/telecom/

 

[1] The Lebanese government’s Decree 218-34 of July 25, 2018 introduced a tax on the use of social media at a rate of 5 FCFA or equivalently US$ 0.009 per megabyte. Online and street protests pushed the government to cancel this tax a few month later.

[2] The tax is specific when its base is a quantity (e.g. minutes, megabyte…).

[3] However, a limited number of competitors does not systematically lead to an income, as shown by the classic case of Bertrand’s duopoly. This would imply that there is a tacit collusion between telecommunications operators and a failure in the processes of regulation of the sector.

[4] We study 25 African countries: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, DRC, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Zambia.

[5] Our approach is close to Djankov et al. (2010) and the Doing Business Report of the World Bank for standard economic activity and the Fiscal Analysis of Resource Industries of the International Monetary Fund for mining and petroleum project.

[6] The cash flow considered here is the pre-tax cash flow corresponding to the difference between turnover and operating and investment expenses.

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Digitalization: a solution for sustainable development?

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Digitalization can contribute to the economic growth of developing countries, particularly by promoting private sector development and financial inclusion.

Digitalization can contribute to the economic growth of developing countries, particularly by promoting private sector development and financial inclusion.

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Covid-19: what impacts on the early childhood sector?

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Faced with school closures in at least 188 countries around the world as a result of the Covid-19 crisis, many educational institutions have had to set up a distance learning…

Faced with school closures in at least 188 countries around the world as a result of the Covid-19 crisis, many educational institutions have had to set up a distance learning system. This temporary reorganization of activity will certainly have a strong and lasting impact on educational structures.

If this distance learning is sometimes complex, particularly because of the problems of connection or availability of computer tools, it is even more so for the early childhood sector, given the risk of overexposure of toddlers to digital tools and the lack of autonomy of the latter in their learning, as evidenced by the three actors dedicated to this sector met for this article.

 

Reinventing learning

The current health crisis has forced educational institutions as a whole to reinvent and rethink their activities. La Coccinelle, a network of crèches and nursery schools in Côte d’Ivoire, has put online exercises, educational games, nursery rhymes and some graphic design, pre-reading and mathematics activities so that children do not lose their skills. At Kër ImagiNation, a learning and cultural center for children in Senegal, online sessions by Zoom were carried out in small groups to enable better participation by the children. As the sessions progressed, the content and the way of interacting with the children at a distance became more refined, for example by using puppets or proposing simple educational experiences, such as an experiment on water, which the children could carry out at home with their parents.

E-learning, although possible and sometimes even favorable for theoretical subjects, does not easily lend itself to practical learning. At La Coccinelle, for example, parents had to print out the exercises to enable the children to work on paper. Because many fields, such as graphic design, cannot be learned online. At the Institut Académique des Bébés in Senegal, a training school dedicated to the professional training of children’s professions, practical subjects represent about 45% of the learners’ curriculum. For these subjects, e-learning was not feasible and practical workshops were conducted on the premises, in small groups. However, this required a significant investment for the promoter, as the whole school organization had to be rethought. The space had to be rearranged in order to respect the meter of social distance between the learners. Masks and hydro-alcoholic gel had to be purchased to equip the learners and trainers. Finally, between each group, the premises had to be disinfected.

E-learning, although possible and sometimes even favorable for theoretical subjects, does not easily lend itself to practical learning.

 

Many difficulties arise with this learning

The crisis revealed huge disparities in the level of emergency preparedness of countries, children’s access to the Internet and the availability of educational materials. These difficulties make it difficult for children who are far away from these tools to learn.   In addition, distance learning has often required the training of both parents and trainers in digital tools.

Finally, home-schooling for toddlers requires the presence of a parent or an adult who is able to accompany the child in his or her learning. However, the latter’s professional occupations were not necessarily compatible with the children’s needs. The closure of schools left parents confused about how to support their children’s learning at home. Aware of these issues, Karima Grant, founder of Kër ImagiNation, now wishes to develop a project specifically dedicated to parents, in order to support them, through a platform, in parenting and pedagogy.

 

The same concern: the future of the early childhood sector and, consequently, the future of these children

The realities of the early childhood sector are of particular concern, as the recovery of tuition fees is even more complex in times of school closures, compounded by the costs of school staff and operations. Many early childhood actors in Sub-Saharan Africa are today in a delicate situation, with an uncertain start to the new school year.

The latter feel forgotten by the public authorities, even though the early childhood sector is essential for the development and construction of the child. In Bangladesh, a study implemented by the World Bank’s Strategic Impact Evaluation Fund (SIEF) revealed that providing young children with an extra year of pre-school education is an effective way to improve school readiness for both boys and girls (especially girls). Researchers measured the impact of an extra year of preschool for children at age 4, compared to the standard year of only one year from age 5. After two years, children who were offered an extra year of preschool had significantly higher scores in literacy, numeracy and social-emotional development than children who were offered preschool only from age 5.

According to Sara Adico, director of La Coccinelle, “The awakening, simulation and development of children have been left behind. But if early childhood is well supervised, it promotes a good psychological development of the child, which is beneficial for the whole nation”.

Children have already begun to unlearn, both in terms of skills (graphics, dictation, etc.) and psychic skills (social interactions, motor skills, etc.), a situation that is more serious for children with psychosocial problems. According to these actors, if the situation were to drag on, it should affect primary, secondary and finally higher education in the years to come, and thus represent a real problem in term of human capital and economic repercussions.

If the situation were to drag on, it should affect primary, secondary and finally higher education in the years to come, and thus represent a real problem in term of human capital

 

Whether for Sara Adico of La Coccinelle, Karima Grant of Kër ImagiNation or Fa Diallo of IAB, the current crisis can be an opportunity to reinvent and rethink the early childhood sector. It is a way for the early childhood education community, once the weaknesses of the digital tool as a solution to early childhood distance learning are recognized, to seek innovative solutions to improve the added value of child care.  But for this to happen, a reflection must be conducted with all stakeholders (families, public institutions, major employers, etc.) to find and create systems that are conducive to the psychological development of children. With regard to early childhood, it is not appropriate to limit efforts in the field of health or nutrition, since the lack of quality early childhood care structures can be especially damaging to the child’s psychological development and thus, in the longer term, have real economic and human capital implications.

 

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