Afrique Créative – Promoting Creative Entrepreneurship in Africa

Today, the CCI sector is predominantly driven by individual, associative or private initiatives that struggle to access financing, particularly from banks, and from public authorities which continue to provide little investment in this field. The opportunities for the emergence of viable cultural businesses and a dynamic cultural economy are thus significantly limited.

While this sector remains vulnerable and continues to require aid via public policy and training mechanisms, it is essential that the best possible support is offered to entrepreneurial initiatives that drive the growth of creative sectors in Africa. Businesses in the cultural sector must be recognized as economic players in their own right, contributing not only to artistic creation, but also to innovation, employment and the attractiveness of a region.

Afrique Créative provides a support system for creative entrepreneurship on the African continent. This call for projects will result in the selection of eight entrepreneurs in the CCI sector, two from each of the four participating countries (Burkina Faso, Morocco, Senegal and Uganda). The eight winners will receive personalized technical and financial support ensuring their long-term development once the support period is over. The aim is to renew and extend this innovative scheme following this pilot phase.

The purpose of the project is twofold:

• To support the development of CCI players on the African continent and contribute to the sustainability of the supported companies
• To encourage private or public financial institutions to take an interest in CCI as a potential sector for investment

• Boost the economic fabric of CCIs in Africa
• Improve the entrepreneurial skills of project leaders
• Support the emergence of an African cultural ecosystem that will create jobs and generate growth