AEDIB 2.0 - Africa-Europe Digital Innovation Bridge

In Africa, small- and medium-sized digital enterprises are drivers of change and innovation. However, they continue to face barriers to growth, including:

• limited access to financing and investment opportunities;
• gaps in business management and technical skills;
• barriers related to technology, markets, and reliable access to the Internet;
• the still incomplete development of appropriate policy and regulatory frameworks;
• limited connections with investors and a lack of collaboration within the ecosystem;
• specific barriers for women-led businesses, especially in access to finance, networks, and technologies.

To address these challenges, the Africa-Europe Digital Innovation Bridge (AEDIB) brings together a consortium of trusted partners made up of Expertise France, Enabel, ESTDEV, GIZ, HAUS, RVO, and Smart Africa.

The project, which is being implemented in 14 countries, seeks to unleash the potential of African innovation by connecting governments, investors, and entrepreneurs, on three priority areas.

1. Collaboration on public policies

This first priority area supports governments and stakeholders in developing inclusive and effective policies for digital entrepreneurship. Its actions include:

• working with governments to streamline digital and green policies, to address the rapidly changing ecosystem of digital entrepreneurship;
• increased cooperation between stakeholders (research institutes, public policymakers, and entrepreneurs) to remove bottlenecks experienced by innovative small- and medium-sized enterprises in the digital and the green transition sectors;
• capacity-building for public decision-makers to better understand the real needs of entrepreneurs in developing their digitally based businesses.

2. Innovation ecosystems

The project helps support structures to improve their services and strengthen their specialisation in the digital and green transition sectors. This involves:

• working with innovation-support organisations to improve the services offered to entrepreneurs (e.g., management, business models, strategic support, etc.);
• enhancing their specialisation in the digital and green sectors (e.g., through support for circular-economy initiatives);
• improving the effectiveness of Africa-Europe cooperation through a dedicated “Joint Innovation Facility” and targeted networking mechanisms.

3. Access to financing

This third action priority seeks to facilitate access to financing for innovative digital companies, and in particular to:

• improve the investment readiness of innovative small- and medium-sized digital enterprises, in particular by improving their business models;
• provide direct financing to innovative digital companies through existing fund administrators;
• mobilise more financing in Africa and Europe through technical cooperation with financial actors, in order to remove barriers to investment and increase the visibility of innovative companies with investors (via pitch events, matchmaking sessions, etc.).