African innovators are reinventing their regulators
Many of the problems African startups come across and are trying to solve are institutional.
African innovators are discovering that building a new product or service often involves creating a new relationship with the government, according to Flutterwave CEO Olugbenga "GB" Agboola. After facing regulatory challenges in Kenya in 2022, Flutterwave began treating regulators as "stakeholders in their business." This view of African innovation is crucial, as many of the problems these companies aim to solve are institutional, not just technological.
In developing economies, innovators must build payment systems, logistics networks, or healthcare systems that richer countries take for granted. Food4Education founder Wawira Njiru explained that she started feeding 25 children in Kenya in 2012 and now feeds over 700,000. Her organization built kitchens, supply networks, and worked with county governments to fund school meals, even when those responsibilities did not fit existing mandates.
Njiru advised meeting regulators "where they are, not where you wish them to be," by understanding government incentives, finding champions, and figuring out which agencies could provide funding. Scaling across Africa requires navigating various regulatory regimes, financial systems, and government institutions. Successful African companies not only build apps, raise funds, or deploy AI but also learn to make new ideas work within the economies they operate in and bring government along.
In Rwanda, Zipline turned a logistics solution into national infrastructure by working with the government to solve a challenging healthcare delivery problem. Initially, the government asked Zipline to improve blood deliveries around the clock and in all weather conditions. Zipline built a drone network, an ordering portal, inventory management system, and air traffic management tools for regulators.
When Zipline delivered on this challenge, the government changed its system around it, effectively turning Zipline's drones into "flying ambulances" and designing a system that fit what the Rwandan government needed. Research by the UN Trade and Development office suggests that regulatory convergence can reduce the cost of non-tariff regulations by 15-30%.
Written by urgent.news from Semafor's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
