Auto-entrepreneurship in Africa: Morocco as a model?

Since its launch in Morocco, the self-employed status has succeeded in establishing itself in economic circles and encouraging entrepreneurship. A fine example that could be duplicated elsewhere on the continent.

“Whoever says that entrepreneurship is doing well in Africa, either he is not telling the truth or he is not living on the continent”. This reply is signed Zakaria Fahim, president of BDO Morocco, to the simple question of knowing: how is entrepreneurship on the continent.

According to him, much remains to be done because, he notes, “most entrepreneurs are outlaws despite themselves”. This requires, both for the public authorities of the countries of the continent, but also the actors of the economic ecosystems, to act in a much more effective way in order to make life easier for entrepreneurs and self-entrepreneurs.

Because, it should be remembered, all evolve in a quasi-interdependent system, the purpose of which is the smooth running of economic activity, and, of course, the fight against unemployment. And in this regard, there is no shortage of examples on the continent to promote self-employment.

No equivalent

“I plead for the mechanism set up in Morocco to be duplicated elsewhere on the continent”, continues Zakaria Fahim, co-founder of Hub Africa. In the kingdom, the status of auto-entrepreneurship has made it possible in a few years to considerably encourage entrepreneurship among young people and working people.

“It is urgent to implement the autoentrepreneur status to give people dignity, especially since it is a system that is agile with tax rates so low that there is no equivalent” . This is a fine example that Morocco can share with its partners on the continent.

Although this system has not yet been generalized, or even simply put into practice in most countries, it should be noted that policies to encourage young people to become self-employed are legion.

However, it is their implementation and their success that poses a problem, especially since, depending on the context, political considerations take precedence over socio-economic emergencies.

Crowdfunding
Nevertheless, the crisis born of the Covid has illustrated the need to provide young people with mechanisms that allow them to take charge of themselves. Today, unfortunately, there are still no continental initiatives carried out by the African Union that succeed at this level.

But, for Zakaria Fahim, mechanisms that have proven themselves elsewhere must be launched on the continent: “In addition to the status of the self-employed entrepreneur, I am thinking in particular of crowdfunding or even the Small factories act for Africa, whose objective is contribute to the fight against the informal sector”. This latest initiative, launched last February, is a proposal to enable African SMEs to overcome the impact of the Covid-19 crisis and project themselves into the post-pandemic period.

Abdellah Benahmed / ECO Inspirations