African Business on the Rise?

SEMINAR with Dr. Arne Bigsten (University of Gothenburg) and Dr. John Kuada (Aalborg University) 

From “The hopeless continent” (Economist, 2000) to “The hopeful continent” (Economist, 2010), African business appea

to be on the rise. Foreign investors are setting up businesses, local industries and entrepreneurship are flourishing, and a new generation of African business lions is finding its way through the challenging institutional environments. 

Yet behind all the hype, how much do we really know about the new African business lions? How widespread are these African lions, what defines this new generation of African firms, and what are the determinants of their success? In short, what are the major research agendas on the rise of African business?

To assist dealing with these important questions, CBDS has invited two distinguished scholars on African enterprise development - Arne Bigsten, Professor in Development Economics at the University of Gothenburg, and John Kuada, Professor of International Management at Aalborg University. Based on the presentations and the discussions, the seminar will seek to refine the research agenda on African business.

The seminar will provide inputs to a major CBDS research project on ‘Successful African Firms and Institutional Change’ (The SAFIC Project) recently funded by the Danida Research Council (see www.cbs.dk/cbds/safic for more information).

Registration necessary

Please send an email with your name, position and institution by June 15 to

Kaja Jorem at ktj.ikl@cbs.dk  

Arranged by

Centre for Business and Development Studies

CBDS is a research centre at CBS focusing on business strategies in developing countries. This seminar is part of the Centre’s seminar series 'Business in Developing Countries'.