South Africa desperately needs to galvanise support for its nascent tech sector and free it from the red tape that holds it back, believes Matsi Modise, the head of a coalition calling for a startup act. But getting such an act passed won’t be easy, she admits.

Several local startup support organisations have banded together to call for the act, hoping that the country can follow in the footsteps of Senegal and Tunisia, where similar acts became law in 2019 and 2018, respectively. Other countries, like Italy and The Philippines, also have startup acts.