How Partnerships between African and European Entrepreneurs Can Support the UN Post-2015 Development Agenda

Abstract

This article discusses how the private sector, and here specifically African–European partnerships between entrepreneurs, can assist to attain the development goals formulated by the United Nations’ Post-2015 Agenda for Sub-Saharan Africa. Drawing on meetings between African and European entrepreneurs convened on the initiative of H. E. Prof. Dr. Horst Köhler, former President of the Federal Republic of Germany and former Managing Director of the IMF, we will discuss the private sector's role for the UN development agenda in the African context from the perspectives of participants of these meetings. More specifically, we will outline the contribution of the business sector in Africa to the creation of employment, education, job opportunities and training for young people, ecological sustainability, economic diversification and a supportive climate for start-ups. However, to enable these contributions, entrepreneurs are calling for favorable policies, reliable institutions, access to financial services and a good infrastructure. On this basis, equitable partnerships between African and European entrepreneurs can be formed to foster sustainable development in Africa.