Meike, please tell us a little bit about yourself.
Meike Neitz: My name is Meike and I’m the founder of the cross-continental Startup consultancy embassidy, and the Africa ambassador for the Digital Hub Initiative.
I’ve always had this thing for destinations that were not immediately on people’s radar – when others went to Spain and France for holidays, I’d travel to Iran, to Greenland, to Romania or Uzbekistan. This was also the reason why I started my career at an Emerging Markets consultancy firm – I was based in Turkey, Indonesia, Algeria and Thailand during that time. I came back to Germany in 2013, and that’s when my deep dive into the Startup world started with Die Höhle der Löwen. When COVID hit and my first consulting business that I had founded in 2016 took a hit, I became Digital Ambassador with GIZ - and spent the next 1,5 years in Namibia, supporting entrepreneurship projects. For the first time since the start of my career I was able to combine my passion for emerging markets with all things tech&startup. I loved it and had the best time!
Still, when I returned to Germany in 2022, I decided to not immediately do “my own thing” again - I felt that especially due to the long covid break, things needed to come into place first, I needed to rebuild my network. So I spent a bit less than two wonderful years at the “team international” of the Digital Hub Initiative (Germany Trade & Invest) . After that, I founded my cross-continental Startup consultancy embassidy - where everything I’ve learned is coming together: I jokingly call myself “Rhythmic Everythingnast” (In reference to my sports when I was a little girl), because I’m covering such a wide span of services ;-)
I offer entrepreneurship support on three levels: Meta (ecosystem building), Macro (Entrepreneurship programme design & execution) and Micro (Startup coachings: Pitchtraining, Personal Branding, Storytelling, Public Speaking).
Secondly, i have a side hustle that takes up about 30-40% of my time and that I really love, which is moderating events and conferences. I’m typically hosting 1-2 events per months, mostly in the Startup field, and many times for the Digital Hub Initiative : )
I realize that it may sound a bit wild because it’s quite a mix, but that’s just who I am ;-)
Please name one business tool you could not live/work without.
Meike Neitz: Honestly, Canva has been one of the biggest game changers, like EVER. I’ve never been a big fan of working in Photoshop or Indesign, and then Canva came along and made everything so much easier! I use it practically every day : )
What are interesting dynamics in Startup ecosystem on the African continent?
Meike Neitz: First of all one has to say that the maturity of the Startup ecosystems on the continent varies a lot, and it’s important to not think of “THE Africa” - there are 54 different African countries with very distinct Startup scenes, but all have them have super interesting dynamics In general, the entrepreneurial ecosystems has been experiencing rapid growth, mostly driven by increasing tech savviness and use, a young population and better entrepreneurial education.The most dynamic ecosystems are the “big four”: Egypt, Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria, yet interestingly, other countries and regions, for example Ghana, Ruanda, or Western Africa with Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire as front runners, have been showing great traction when it comes to their Startup activities. The uptake has been showing for example in the funding: There was a big “heatwave” with fast rising numbers of investments into African Startups until 2022, which was great.Since then, equal to global trends, the numbers have also on the African continent been going down, but not to pre-heatwave levels. afr
The most vibrant sector is still (by far) FinTech, yet recently ClimateTech has seen some interesting traction (driven mostly by Energy solutions), as well as ConsumerTech, Health and of course Mobility&Logistics. Some African governments have put forward favourable Startup regulations (for example Nigeria or Kenya), but in many countries, Startups still lack support, especially when it comes to early-stage funding.
What business opportunities are there for German business, in particular Startups?
By 2050, Africa is projected to have 2,5 billion people - that is 25% of the world’s population and also by far the youngest. With the youth being increasingly educated and tech savvy, and also due to an emerging middle class as well as an rising business scene with more professionally operating local businesses in many African countries, more political stability and important milestones like the Africa Free Trade Act, there are huge opportunities. I see a lot of potential for B2B SaaS companies, consumer tech, energy, agritech and environmental solutions. Also, Startups that are looking for developers or other young talent could make use of one of bridges currently being built to talent on the African continent. German VCs and family offices should not miss looking for interesting investment deals. Then there are country-specific opportunities, for example Tunisia has become a hub for IT outsourcing, really doing good work there. The opportunities are manifold!
What instruments are there to support transcontinental activities by German companies?
Meike Neitz: There are four main ones that come to mind:
1. Beratungsgutscheine Africa (BAFA vouchers)
The most important one is probably the consulting voucher BAFA by the German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). It offers small and medium-sized enterprises financial support for consultancy services to facilitate market entry in African countries. The funding covers up to 85% of the consultancy costs. The consultancy can cover anything from market analyses, to the search of local business partners. Companies can use of to three of these vouchers per calendar year.
2. Geschäftsstelle Africa (Business Network Africa) This is also an initiative of the BMWK, currently run by my former company Germany Trade & Invest that offers information, advice and support services, especially for SMEs - they also have good virtual information events and can connect to local players and useful other contacts. Their publication, the Africa Business Guide, is super helpful and informative!
3. The Market development programme (Markterschließungsprogramm)
The market development programme offers support in verticals such as health or energy, also with the aim to help companies make a successful move to the African continent. It organizes trade fairs abroad, market exploration trips and business initiation programmes.
4. Investment and Export guarantees by the government
There are risk protection instruments (by Euler Hermes mostly) for German companies that are looking to invest or export to countries on the African continent, they protect against political risks or economic risks.
… and last but not least of course with embassidy and our Team Africa, we’re happy to offer tailored support! : )
As a global ambassador, how do you envision fostering collaboration between local and international tech ecosystems, and what impact do you hope to achieve?
Meike Neitz: I believe that we’re past the stage where the African continent needs development aid in its traditional sense – I believe it needs entrepreneurship, innovation and stronger business ties to other continents. When it comes to the African and the European Startup ecosystem, very little commercial activities and exchanges have been taking place. I believe that this will change in the future, and want to play an active role in driving that change!
My role is mainly in connecting people and companies across the continents - and helping to build the local Startup ecosystems that are simply younger than our German or many European ones. So my role is to design and execute cross-continental Entrepreneurship programmes, connect investors from Europe to local African (Startup) companies, helping European startups and companies identify and tap into African markets, helping build solid African startups that create employment, implement innovative solutions in society, strengthen the African business scene and serve as reliable future partners for European companies.
Colleagues from Tunisia told me that it was always super tough to find German companies willing to even look into business opportunities in Tunisia. It would always take a lot to convince them it was worth tapping into and to bring them on a business trip, but once they did a huge percentage of these companies started collaborating with African partners and investing into Tunisia. That shows that the bridges need to be built in order for companies to walk!
What is the most important entrepreneurial advice you would give others?
Meike Neitz: Create a strong network of supporters, partners and mentors from the very beginning.
‘Distraction comes in the disguise of opportunity’ - follow a clear strategy and don't get distracted, even if some things sound like great opportunities at first. Concentrate on your ‘core value proposition’ and product/service and don't get bogged down.
Don't underestimate the power of personal branding. If founders manage to build a strong personal brand early on, the ratios shift from ‘push’ to ‘pull’. So, instead of doing push marketing, opportunities, investor talks and partnerships come in through the pull of your personal branding. This can be a game changer for the entire company!
What are the biggest challenges you face when working across the European and the African continents, and how do you navigate these complexities?
Meike Neitz: In my eyes the biggest challenge is probably the image many people still have in mind when it comes to doing business on the African continent. Yes, it’s not easy, but it’s also exciting and if carried out well, will pay off. We have to confront that by bringing more African companies to the European continent and more European companies to African countries.
When it comes to cultural differences - and there I don't differentiate between working with teams from Darmstadt or Dhakar - is to put yourself into their shoes, into the local context, the situation, the background of the people you work with. Hear their stories, speak their language.
Patience is key, open communications is key, openness and tenderness is key. Not taking everything so seriously and, most importantly, not personal, is key. Then it is so enriching!
