“Burundian entrepreneurs face the lack of access to finance. Banks are reluctant to grant loans to entrepreneurs for lack of collateral, “said Pierre Claver Nduwumwami, General Manager of Burundi Business Incubator (BBI) on the occasion of the official launch of the week dedicated to entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneurs attending ceremonies to launch the week dedicated to entrepreneurship
He indicates that the majority of Burundian entrepreneurs run this business by default. That is, they start business because they lack jobs. “The majority of entrepreneurs are either unemployed, retired people or those who lost their jobs,” says Nduwumwami adding that those entrepreneurs do not possess the necessary skills to run business.
He indicates that rich people do not run business since they are afraid of taking financial risks.
Nduwumwami also speaks of the lack of good management of entrepreneurs adding that the actors in the promotion of entrepreneurship lack access to data. “We do not know how many people want to get into entrepreneurship in order to support them,” he says.
Alexandre Ndikumana, an entrepreneur mentions that Burundian entrepreneurs are not sufficiently informed about the socio-economic situation of the country. “All opportunities provided in the local market are benefited by Ugandans, Tanzanians and Kenyans,” says Ndikumana, who regrets that school education in Burundi is not conducive to entrepreneurship. “It directs young people to seek employment instead of creating it themselves,” he adds referring to the high rate of unemployment in Burundi.
He asks the government to promote training and employability policies in the education system. That is, to allow students to conduct trade during the school curriculum. “The government needs to support successful entrepreneurs to sponsor those who want to start their business.”
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