Africa: African Entrepreneurship Already Has What It Takes to Build the World's Next Great Companies

What the report says

In an interview for the RootsToFoods Capital Series podcast, Jeff Hoffman — co-founder of Priceline and chairman of the Global Entrepreneurship Network — argued that Africa already has the people needed to build globally competitive companies. The episode, distributed by AllAfrica and recorded with OviBees Ventures chief executive Ovidiu Bujorean, focused on what still limits faster growth for entrepreneurs across the continent.

Hoffman said the main constraints are not a lack of talent, but weaker access to coaching, business networks and capital that is prepared to engage with founders. He pointed to examples from markets including Algeria and noted that similar patterns can be seen in other emerging economies, where capable founders may lack education, resources or connections. The conversation also touched on his broader view that companies scale best when they are built around customer needs and when founders learn to delegate and manage growth.

He argued that many entrepreneurs need more practical training in hiring, conflict resolution, presentations and other soft skills that are often overlooked. He also said founders should better understand investor expectations before pitching, describing coachability as an important sign of future scale potential.

The episode closed the first wave of the Capital Series, which examines why capital often fails to reach African and other emerging-market opportunities at sufficient speed. Hoffman’s comments added to a broader discussion about whether the bigger challenge is access to money, or the ability to deploy it effectively.