Having raised up to $300 million, according to employers, the Senegalese startup ecosystem is growing, demonstrating a strong capacity to attract investments on the financial market.
In Senegal, “ more than $300 million has been raised by growing startups, and this momentum continues in 2024 », Revealed Tuesday in Dakar Mbagnick Diop, president of the Senegal Business Movement (Meds).
Speaking at the opening of the 7th edition of the Startups Show – AFRITECH, Mr. Diop stressed that this “ figure ranks our country among the first three on the continent, well above its weight relative to its population or its GDP. »
« The startup financing ecosystem in Senegal has seen great progress. Several dozen Senegalese startups have raised tens of millions of dollars. More than 50 investors have been active in at least one fundraising in Senegal between 2022 and 2023 », continued the president of Meds.
Based on this observation, he believes that the State has a duty to support this dynamic and strengthen competitiveness in this strategic sector.
« We are building the New Economy of tomorrow, the Knowledge Economy, and have a duty to be very attentive to cognitive sciences and emerging technologies. Strategic and technological monitoring, audacity, a sense of risk, intuition of opportunities and unshakeable self-confidence are fundamental and essential qualities to instill in our youth so that they are engaged, creative, productive of knowledge and 4.0 skills “, declared Mbagnick Diop.
He added that these qualities, a trademark of Meds, constitute “ a lever for strong and sustainable economic growth backed by the ‘Project’ (new framework for public policies). This culture and the qualities associated with it can undoubtedly relate to the quality of our education and our independence of mind, favoring dreams, projection and innovation. »
In his opinion, the multiplication of meeting spaces for young people carrying innovative and futuristic projects, sharing of experiences, promotion of success stories, training in different entrepreneurship skills, mentoring, opportunities for financing of projects with donors, and networking must be everyone’s concern.
TE/ard/St/APA
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