InnovationEntrep: Africa MENA

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

Innovation is a vital process that can lead to the introduction of new ideas, methods, and products. It helps improve existing practices, accelerate development, and enable further prosperity. In the African and MENA context, innovation is charting an uneven course. Governments have either championed innovation through regulation and incentives to address youth unemployment and brain drain, or they suppressed it maintaining the privileges of a few. Despite these uncertainties, the social and economic ladder enabled by innovation and entrepreneurship represent a significant opportunity for Africa and MENA. It is driven by youth creativity, ingenuity within the informal sector, efforts by the entrepreneurial ecosystems to advocate for innovation friendly public policies, and the important role of the diaspora. AI is also playing a key role in leapfrogging development if only the right use cases and strategies are applied. In light of these trends, there has been a renewed push toward better defining what exactly is meant by and required to achieve economic development by fostering and catalyzing innovation: to what extent can innovation enhance and even disrupt Africa’s struggling economies and the prevailing bureaucracy? Can it reduce youth unemployment or is it mostly generating hope by showcasing that success is achievable without unfair advantages? Apart from innovation, are there other prerequisites for flourishing entrepreneurial ecosystems? How can African and MENA states embrace innovation in a way that will durably revitalize their economies? This 14-week course will explore the complex dynamics at work in select African and MENA countries, surrounding innovation, entrepreneurship and their impact on economic development. The course will seek to better understand how innovative entrepreneurial ecosystems are fostered, what it takes to put them into full steam, and where are their limits. Working individually and in teams, students will gain a practical understanding of innovation-led development, and obtain skills in influencing the on-going policy debate, as well as the programmatic and organizational transitions of various actors in the ecosystem. Students will challenge assumptions and examine successes, failures and track record of entrepreneurial ecosystems building policy and practice. Class discussion will center on real-world reading material and actual case studies from innovators and policy makers in Africa and MENA – i.e., ecosystem successes and failures, policy initiatives, donors reports, case studies, toolkits, operational documents, and program evaluations. Students will gain practical skills to analyze arguments, assess challenges and make recommendations on key strategy and policy issues (start up acts, IP protection, funding, AI and doing business indicators reforms).