Is "Macro" the New Microfinance in Africa?
The only thing that is constant is change …
Realising transformative change on the continent will undoubtedly involve many difficult conversations and challenging of the very notions and pillars on which previous waves of promised change have been founded; after-all that is the entrepreneur’s way. So let us embrace new points of view, in particular those that advocate new frameworks which provide alternatives to the underlying status quos, that have by ambitious standards somewhat under-delivered and left us yearning for more.
Without further ado we present Sangu Delle, who takes a moment to challenge what was once one of the safest assumptions on how to unlock grass-roots growth in Africa.
In this short, provocative TED talk, financier Sangu questions whether microfinance — small loans to small entrepreneurs — is the best way to drive growth in developing countries.
“We seem to be fixated on this romanticised idea that every poor person in Africa is an entrepreneur,” he says. “Yet, my work has taught me that most people want jobs.”
Delle, a TED Fellow, makes the case for supporting large companies and factories — and clearing away the obstacles to pan-African trade.