Following the rapid political dynamics in Ethiopia, the second populous nation in Africa, many stories and developments are unfolding. Addis Ababa, the capital, has been the political, financial and technological center of Ethiopia for a long time. Host to the African Union and many other international organizations, it’s also sometimes named the capital of Africa. Take any metrics on the table, there is a huge and clear gap between Addis Ababa and the second biggest city if there is any. As a result, concerned groups and individuals have been forwarding their genuine critics against the asymmetric accumulation of wealth and politics in the capital.
The writer travels to the northern part of Ethiopia, Tigray region, and wants to share his observations on the horizon of the capital, Mekelle. The region is known for the remnants of ancient civilizations mainly the Axum civilization. Fast forward to the current dynamics, Mekelle is becoming the new hub for tech startups. It’s a day to day experience to see IT solutions/supports for the different sectors, and most solutions can be collectively referred to as e-services (e-health, e-learning, e-governance, agriculture, e-commerce, and others). Following the booming IT ecosystem, many financial industries are stepping into the horizon to grab the opportunities in the market. It looks Mekelle is ripening the blessings in the disguise of the current political turmoils in the entire nation.
AllenaTech is the pioneer and prominent IT startup in the city. Founded with the mission to establish a knowledge-based economy, it’s dubbed to be the next change agent in the IT ecosystem. In its first-ever general assembly, it cashed in more than ETB 40 million by selling its shares. This shades a bright hope to the horizon in that investors are building confidence in the fin-tech industry. Most importantly, AllenaTech is founded by MIT graduates, and it’s like an aimed stone hitting the target. MIT aims to produce skilled graduates who can fill the IT hole in the region.
Another very juvenile and progressing startup is PenTech shared company. It was started by four MIT graduates and currently, it’s stuff number has grown dramatically. Initially established with a focus on printing and design works, it’s demonstrated remarkable achievements and expansions. A couple of years back, it opened an ICT college and it currently teaches in degree programs. It seems it hasn’t hit the target in mind yet, and this year it’s determined to diversify its business areas, including but not limited to, planting first-ever desktop assembly factory and plastic production industry. It’s selling shares, and so far it’s already cashed in more than ETB 30 million in a single day.
Mekelle is giving birth to at least one startup a month and many of these are planning to go public in the near future. Bithio established with a focus on education is one of the new breeds on the ground and the writer has confirmed there are internal communications to go public. Bithio, a sibling group, proposes a strong value to revolutionize the deteriorating education of the region.
Many other startups are also on the pipeline to go public. Their so far presence has been hidden, or more technically expressed limited, for different reasons. However, with the recent developments, many sibling groups, duo owned or private startups are trying to benefit by going public and expand or diversify their businesses as a consequence.
If Mekelle is sinking, it’s for the loads of business ideas the young generation is bringing into the table. To the writer’s excitement, unlike in the past when this area was given a deaf ear, investors are hunting down the tech startups on the horizon. It’s a recent experience and it can be projected innovative ideas will be the governing elements in the future.
As the last recommendation, the relationship among participants (mainly innovators, startups, investment banks, and other actors) should be well regulated and the government is expected to step into and smoothen the context for further collaborations. Regulations shouldn’t lag way behind the new innovative ideas, otherwise, it might expose the market for misbehaving actors. The traditional laws and regulations shouldn’t be blocking stones to the leapfrogging startups either. It should also enable healthy competitions among these startups.
It’s the writer’s view and for any comments/critics he can be reached at:
misdess@gmail.com!