Norrsken Africa Week highlights potential of African entrepreneurs

By XINHUA

KIGALI, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) — Hundreds of entrepreneurs and innovators from across the African continent gathered on Wednesday in the Rwandan capital of Kigali for the launch of the Norrsken Africa Week, featuring discussions with industry players on how to make impact investments that work for Africa. The annual Norrsken Africa Week aims to mobilize funds for African innovation by connecting investors with entrepreneurs and innovators, Pascal Murasira, the managing director of Norrsken East Africa, said at the launching ceremony. The annual event brings together “global investors, African venture capital firms and limited partners together to facilitate meaningful connections between African founders, global business leaders, public officials and regulators,” he said. Speaking at the event, Rwandan President Paul Kagame said Africa is a profitable region and should be seen by investors as a prime investment destination. “Investors need to look at Africa not only as a big market, which it is, but also as a thriving people or society that will to a large extent match or even supersede what exists elsewhere in the world,” he said. “I’ve never understood why there should be a particular geographical place where everything is to be underestimated or underrated, and therefore, the investors need to bear in mind that Africa has everything the rest of the world has, even more.” The Norrsken Africa Week was initiated by the Norrsken Foundation, a non-profit organization established in 2016 with a commitment to supporting entrepreneurs. Enditem