OSE (Observatory of Supports for Entrepreneurship)
OSE stands for Observatory of Supports for Entrepreneurship (in French: Observatoire des Soutiens à l'Entrepreneuriat). It is the scientific programme behind OSE in Africa: an independent observatory that maps, measures and benchmarks the actors that support entrepreneurs (incubators, accelerators, funds, public agencies, NGOs, universities, etc.) across Africa, MENA, GCC and emerging regions. We apply open, peer-reviewed methods — the 5-layer framework, RBV/nRBV, longitudinal observation — to make entrepreneurial-support ecosystems measurable, comparable and accountable.
About OSE in Africa →Entrepreneurial ecosystem
A geographically bounded, interdependent set of actors, institutions, knowledge flows, financial flows and cultural conditions that, together, produce ambitious entrepreneurship. Following Stam (2015) and Audretsch & Belitski's productive entrepreneurship lineage, OSE treats the ecosystem as a multi-layer system rather than a flat list of organisations.
Examples: Casablanca's startup ecosystem; Rabat–Tangier–Casablanca corridor; Cairo's fintech sub-ecosystem; the East-African digital corridor.
Read the OSE methodology →OSE 5-layer framework
OSE's core analytical lens. Each ecosystem is decomposed into 5 capability layers: Technical (resources, infrastructure), Cognitive (knowledge, training), Relational (networks, social capital), Symbolic (institutions, legitimacy) and Psychological (mindset, agency). Scoring an ecosystem layer-by-layer reveals the bottlenecks that aggregate scores hide.
See the framework on Expert →OSE Quality Score
Composite indicator combining the 5 capability-layer subscores, network density, and longitudinal momentum. Expressed on a 0–100 scale. Designed to be defensible in front of a comité scientifique — every input is operationally defined and replicable.
RBV / nRBV
Resource-Based View and natural-RBV. RBV (Barney, 1991) explains firm performance by valuable, rare, inimitable, non-substitutable resources. nRBV extends this to network-level resources — what an ecosystem produces because of who-works-with-whom, not because of any individual actor.
Examples: A capability radar shows where a country has rare resources; a BoostsNetwork view shows where these resources combine into nRBV outcomes.
Read related publications →Dynamic Capabilities (Sensing / Seizing / Transforming)
Teece's framework, applied at ecosystem level. Sensing = the ecosystem's ability to detect opportunities; Seizing = its ability to mobilise resources around them; Transforming = its ability to evolve its institutional fabric. OSE's VVIP tier exposes these as quantitative scores benchmarked against macro context (World Bank, UNCTAD).
Country diagnostic
A 30–60 page document that synthesises an ecosystem's structure (actors, capability layers, networks), performance (rankings, scores), gaps (vs. continental peers and macro context), and recommendations. Standard format used by ministries, donors and embassies.
Browse country reports →Network density
Share of actually-existing collaboration ties between ecosystem actors, divided by the maximum number of possible ties. High density = a tightly woven ecosystem. Low density = isolated actors. OSE measures density both regionally and per layer.
Boost
A quantifiable lever an actor offers to the ecosystem (e.g. financing, training, certification, internationalisation, mentoring). Each support structure declares a portfolio of boosts; OSE qualifies and weights them based on observed delivery, not declarative claims.
Longitudinal data
Time-series observation of the same actors and indicators over multiple years (10+ years for many OSE countries). Enables before/after analysis of policy interventions, programme evaluations and structural change — impossible with snapshot surveys.
VVIP tier
OSE's most restrictive access tier. Unlocks the strategic Capabilities Radar, Dynamic Capabilities scoring, and statistical baselines (z-score, percentile, OSE×WorldBank correlations). Allocated to institutional clients on contract, not via self-service.
OSE Atlas
The free, public live map of all OSE-qualified actors, accessible at expert.ose.africa. Filterable by country, type, capability layer. The starting point for any institutional engagement.
Open the live Atlas →Qualified actor
A support organisation (incubator, accelerator, fund, public agency, university programme, etc.) that has been verified, classified and scored by the OSE pipeline. Qualification implies metadata completeness, network presence verification and capability tagging — not just a name in a list.
