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<p>ACT Foundation has announced grants for 27 organizations in its 2021 Four Years of Impact initiative. The grantees cut across players in Health, Entrepreneurship, Leadership and the Environment. To understand the rationale behind the selection and what the expectations are from these new grantees, CNBC Africa spoke with Osayi Alile, Chief executive Officer at ACT Foundation.</p>


ACT Foundation announces grants for 27 organizations

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<p>On top of a fragile economy, small businesses have had many challenges thrown at them in the recent while. We’ve had the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent restrictions on the economy. And last week businesses were affected by the worst violence in post-Apartheid South Africa. Sonto Pooe, Founder of NativeChild joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Small businesses bear the brunt of violent unrest in SA

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<p>South Africa is dealing with an unemployment rate of 33per cent, with the youth accounting for about 60per cent of unemployed people. Last week, the World Bank released a report on South Africa, with a focus on jobs &#038; how we can build back better in this regard. And one of the key points that the bank made is that young entrepreneurs are one of South Africa’s best hopes of solving the jobs crisis. Joining CNBC Africa to discuss what we can do to develop this space is Matsi Modise, Vice Chairperson at SiMODiSA; Sumarie Roodt, Chairperson at Silicon Cape &#038; Vusi Thembekwayo, CEO at MyGrowthFund Venture Partners.</p>


How to make entrepreneurship a viable option in SA’s recovery

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<p>Rwanda recently unveiled a new entrepreneurship development policy which is expected to address challenges faced by entrepreneurs in the country. To understand how it differs from the previous policy of 2010, CNBC Africa spoke to Sam Kamugisha, Director General for Industry Promotion and Entrepreneurship Development at the Ministry of Trade and Industry.</p>


Rwanda’s new entrepreneurship policy: Here’s what you need to know

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<p>More than half of South Africa&#8217;s youth don&#8217;t have a job. Government has been trying to fix youth unemployment, but with little success. Danny Tong, CEO of InvesTong Group joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


InvesTong CEO on how to leverage technology to spur entrepreneurship

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MS Geek Africa, an entrepreneurship competition with the aim of attracting more girls to tech will be happening at the Transform Africa Summit in Conakry, Guinea. Joining CNBC Africa for more on the competition is Vanessa Umutoni, Vice President of Girls in ICT Rwanda.</p>


Transform Africa Summit to inspire African girls in tech with MS Geek Africa

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East Africa is the hub of entrepreneurship, at least going by the World Economic Forum&#8217;s latest report but access to finance is still the biggest challenge for many start-ups in the region. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Arnold Kwizera spoke to Abraham Banadawa, Founder of Utilis Ventures, a block chain based funding platform trying to find a solution to this.</p>


This blockchain platform aims to bridge funding gap

This blockchain platform aims to bridge funding gap, facilitate financing for businesses

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<p>In efforts to improve gender parity on the continent, a new initiative focused on entrepreneurship has been shortlisted for roll out. If all goes as expected, the initiative is set to impact the lives of 3 million women in Africa and Asia. Anu Shah, CEO of EFI Hub joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Anu Shah of EFI Hub on how new entrepreneurship initiative can help spur gender parity in Africa

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<p>The theme of this year&#8217;s African Economic Conference focuses on jobs, entrepreneurship and capacity development for African youths. This was jointly organised by African Development Bank (AfDB), United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Hanan Morsy, Director for Macroeconomic Forecasting and Research at AfDB joins CNBC Africa to discuss the ways to build capacity development for African youths.</p>


African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

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<p>CNBC Africa talks to the world’s first ever Artificial Intelligence minister Omar Bin Sultan Olama about how new technology can increase knowledge and help prevent car accidents.</p>


Captains of Industry: In conversation with the world’s first ever AI minister Omar Bin Sultan Olama

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<p>Many people have come forward stating that entrepreneurship is the only solution for the rising rates of unemployment. Kevin Mbundu, Founder of Kivu Noir Coffee joins CNBC Africa to share his journey in the agriculture sector.</p>


Kevin Mbundu on agriculture

Kevin Mbundu on agriculture, coffee, his entrepreneurship journey


<figure class="wp-block-image is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/gettyimages-652617766-594x5941.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-347815" width="709" height="518"/><figcaption>AUSTIN, TX &#8211; MARCH 12:  Businessman Mark Cuban speaks onstage at &#8216;Mark Cuban &amp; Tech Execs: Is Govt Disrupting Disruption?&#8217; during 2017 SXSW Conference and Festivals at Austin Convention Center on March 12, 2017 in Austin, Texas.  (Photo by JEALEX Photo/Getty Images for SXSW)</figcaption></figure>



<p>By <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/tom-huddleston-jr/">Tom Huddleston Jr.</a></p>



<p>A little self-reliance can go a long way for&nbsp;<a class="" href="https://www.cnbc.com/make-it/entrepreneurs/">entrepreneurs</a>.</p>



<p>That’s according to tech billionaire Mark Cuban, who&nbsp;<a href="https://onairwithryan.iheart.com/featured/ryan-seacrest/content/2019-10-10-mark-cuban-slept-on-the-floor-prior-to-becoming-a-billionaire-listen/" class="">told</a>&nbsp;Ryan Seacrest the “biggest mistake” an entrepreneur can make when launching a new business.</p>



<p>“I think the biggest mistake people make is once they have an idea and the goal of starting a business, they think they have to raise money,” Cuban said on Thursday’s episode of Seacrest’s podcast “On Air.”</p>



<p>“And once you raise money, that’s not an accomplishment, that’s an obligation,” because&nbsp;“now, you’re reporting to whoever you raised money from.”</p>



<p>Cuban says entrepreneurs who rely on outside funding can become too beholden to the interests of their investors, who might have a different idea of how to grow the business.</p>



<p>“If you can start on your own … do it by [yourself] without having to go out and raise money,” Cuban tells Seacrest.</p>



<p>Business experts and entrepreneurs often argue the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.inc.com/craig-bloem/5-reasons-why-i-always-caution-entrepreneurs-not-to-self-fund-their-startups.html" class="">pros</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://about.crunchbase.com/blog/bootstrapping-business/" class="">cons</a>&nbsp;of raising outside money to start a business versus self-funding (aka “<a href="https://hbr.org/2016/03/why-every-startup-should-bootstrap" class="">bootstrapping</a>”), the latter of which can typically involve sinking the founders’ personal savings into a new venture and can result in slower growth if the business is reliant on slowly increasing revenue in order to expand.</p>



<p>While fundraising injects much-needed capital into a nascent startup, taking on outside investors can also bring pressure from those investors to grow the company faster than might be healthy in the long-run in order to create an immediate return on their investment.</p>



<p>In Cuban’s own case, the billionaire owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks started his first business after moving to Dallas with only $60 in his pocket in 1982. Called MicroSolutions, the company was a computer consulting business that he&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/mavericks/2018/07/07/flashback-36-years-ago-today-mark-cuban-arrived-in-dallas-flat-busted-broke-and-the-rest-is-history/" class="">launched with money</a>&nbsp;he and his roommates made throwing keg parties and charging guests $20 apiece for entry.</p>



<p>Cuban, who&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/05/how-mark-cuban-became-a-billionaire.html" class="">had recently been fired</a>&nbsp;from a computer software store at that time, marketed his new company to his former clients from his previous job and built it into a successful business that he would eventually sell to CompuServe for&nbsp;<a href="https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/dallas-mavericks/mavericksheadlines/2011/04/15/how-mark-cuban-went-from-beer-stained-floors-flat-broke-to-billions" class="">$6 million</a>&nbsp;in 1990.</p>



<p>So what’s Cuban’s advice?</p>



<p>“Try to find something that you can make, or that you can buy yourself, and sell to people around you and then ask for referrals and grow the business that way and you can turn it into something enormous,” he tells Seacrest.</p>



<p><em>This article first appeared on CNBC </em><a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/11/mark-cuban-biggest-mistake-people-make-when-starting-a-business.html"><em>https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/11/mark-cuban-biggest-mistake-people-make-when-starting-a-business.html</em></a><em> and is republished with its permission.</em></p>


Billionaire Mark Cuban: This is the ‘biggest mistake’ people make when starting a business

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<p>Ifeyinwa Ogochukwu, CEO of Tony Elumelu Foundation says the fifth edition of the foundation’s entrepreneurship forum was an opportunity for African entrepreneurs to meet with government officials and stakeholders to discuss ways to create enabling environment for businesses. She joins CNBC Africa’s Kenneth Igbomor for more.</p>


Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO: Why Africa should be excited about its young entrepreneurs

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<p>The Very Young Entrepreneur Education and Acceleration Summit in Johannesburg brought together investors and educators to promote entrepreneurship as a career path at a young age. CNBC Africa’s Lubabalo Mashiqana caught up with Elizabeth Bintliff, CEO of Junior Achievement Africa to discuss the role of youth empowerment programmes in boosting entrepreneurship.</p>


Boosting youth entrepreneurship in Africa

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<p>The Very Young Entrepreneur Education and Acceleration summit underway at the Hilton Hotel brought investors, educators and young entrepreneurs from across Africa together to explore new avenues from school to entrepreneurship. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Lubabalo Mashiqana spoke to Aaron Fu, Managing Director of MEST Africa about incubators&#8217; role to help grow young entrepreneurs.</p>


MEST Africa’s role in growing young entrepreneurs

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<p>The inaugural &#8220;Very Young Entrepreneur Education and Acceleration summit&#8221; is currently underway at the Hilton Hotel in Johannesburg. This one-day conference is a new innovation to explore the transition from school directly to entrepreneurship. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Lubabalo Mashiqana spoke with Koffi Assouan, Program Manager at Mastercard Foundation to talk about the role of investors in growing entrepreneurship in Africa.</p>


Investing in Africa’s entrepreneurs

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<p>The conversations around empowering entrepreneurship has become very dominant globally and locally. And the solution may be found in an initiative by a local South African company who has become the first payment processor to offer zero processing for emerging businesses and NGOs.  Adesh Kisten, Chief Commercial Officer of Ozow joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


entrepreneurship

ACT Foundation announces grants for 27 organizations

Small businesses bear the brunt of violent unrest in SA

How to make entrepreneurship a viable option in SA’s recovery

Rwanda’s new entrepreneurship policy: Here’s what you need to know

InvesTong CEO on how to leverage technology to spur entrepreneurship

Transform Africa Summit to inspire African girls in tech with MS Geek Africa

This blockchain platform aims to bridge funding gap, facilitate financing for businesses

Anu Shah of EFI Hub on how new entrepreneurship initiative can help spur gender parity in Africa

African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

Captains of Industry: In conversation with the world’s first ever AI minister Omar Bin Sultan Olama

Kevin Mbundu on agriculture, coffee, his entrepreneurship journey

Billionaire Mark Cuban: This is the ‘biggest mistake’ people make when starting a business

Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO: Why Africa should be excited about its young entrepreneurs

Boosting youth entrepreneurship in Africa

MEST Africa’s role in growing young entrepreneurs

Investing in Africa’s entrepreneurs

Empowering entrepreneurship with zero fees

News Tips

Advertise With Us

entrepreneurship

ACT Foundation announces grants for 27 organizations

Small businesses bear the brunt of violent unrest in SA

How to make entrepreneurship a viable option in SA’s recovery

Rwanda’s new entrepreneurship policy: Here’s what you need to know

InvesTong CEO on how to leverage technology to spur entrepreneurship

Transform Africa Summit to inspire African girls in tech with MS Geek Africa

This blockchain platform aims to bridge funding gap, facilitate financing for businesses

Anu Shah of EFI Hub on how new entrepreneurship initiative can help spur gender parity in Africa

African Economic Conference: Hanan Morsy on how to build capacity development for African youths

Captains of Industry: In conversation with the world’s first ever AI minister Omar Bin Sultan Olama

Kevin Mbundu on agriculture, coffee, his entrepreneurship journey

Billionaire Mark Cuban: This is the ‘biggest mistake’ people make when starting a business

Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO: Why Africa should be excited about its young entrepreneurs

Boosting youth entrepreneurship in Africa

MEST Africa’s role in growing young entrepreneurs

Investing in Africa’s entrepreneurs

Empowering entrepreneurship with zero fees

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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