On the week that marks Global Entrepreneurship, I haven’t even gotten half way and yet I have met three entrepreneurs (one social) who told me about the impact corruption has on their lives.
The first is at the aspiring stage. He just finished a business plan to sell liquor on the outskirts of Nairobi. His reason for consulting me was not just to take a look at the plan and let him know if he could proceed. The plan was great: projections, cash flows, inventories … but missing were what are commonly called indirect costs.
The aspiring entrepreneur wanted to know where he would put the cost for “protection” that was to be paid to the police as well as the local gang. He asked, does that go under miscellaneous costs?
The next day I met two other entrepreneurs. The first a social entrepreneur with a brilliant concept has been at the contract signing stage for a grant from an NGO. In his case, though the boss at the overseas headquarters has said that the project should commence, the local officers seem to have problems preparing the final documents so the grant can be disbursed. The weary social entrepreneur asked: do you think they want a bribe?
The final entrepreneur I met has been in business for two years, and is making money. When I asked him how easy it was to secure contracts with his large business clients, he didn’t even waste a second in responding that you have to be friendly with the person in charge of procurement, then not only do you get local purchase orders, but you also get paid without the headache of having to chase for the money long after the invoice due date has passed.
And indeed these three entrepreneurs show that corruption and cronyism are the shadowy elephants in the room that need to be addressed. Most times the assumption is that corruption is prevalent in the public sector. But it can be just as rampant in the private and third sectors. Youth entrepreneurs by their very essence of being young and not as connected socially and financially are vulnerable to unfair business practices against them. This means that they too often like the last entrepreneur frequently engage in bribery and it eventually becomes just another operational cost, though not inserted as glaringly into the audited accounts of their enterprises.
The loss they face in terms of business is also shared amongst the larger corporations with corrupt procurement officers. They wind up paying heftier prices though they probably never learn about it. In the case of the NGO sector, the loss is probably even more fatal in terms of projects that could save lives never taking off because of corrupt fund managers.
Food for thought during this third Global Entrepreneurship week whose theme this year is “dismantling barriers”.
Fiona Mati is the founder of the Youth Interactive Portal for Enterprise a social enterprise that provides free information and resources to youth entrepreneurs in East Africa. For more information, visit www.yipekenya.org, and follow @yipeorg on Twitter.
A fascinating article by Kofi Akosah-Sarpong titled ‘Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s “Funeral Oration”’, published in The African Executive this week describes the growing custom among Ghanaians of spending vast amounts of money on funerals. In fact according to Akosah-Sarpong, these ‘bling’ laden funerals often leave the living in debt.
However what we found more intriguing is that the funeral business has also spurred on various related enterprises. Akosah-Sarpong writes:
“Kweku Akosah, one of the leading funeral services proprietors in Ghana, owns the Owners Funeral Services. Owners Funeral Services, driven by Ghanaians sheer obsession with the dead has grown so much that it has branches in most parts of Ghana. Akosah employs over 100 people with varied professionals – wailers, criers, dancers, praise-singers, decorators of the dead, coffin makers, musicians, tailors and seamstresses, promoters, food makers and servers among others.”
In fact death has become so commoditised in Ghana that funeral service owners like Kweku Akosah also offer further incentives to use their services such as financing.
All this in a country where the living still struggle day to day for basic living needs such as food, shelter and education.
A post published at the end of September on the Good Intentions are not Enough blog, questioned the viability of introduction of new bottom of the pyramid innovations such as the cook stoves hailed by Hillary Clinton during the recently ended MDG summit.
The gist of the post is that as benevolent a gesture the stoves are for the 1.2 billion people considered to live in poverty worldwide who will use them, the durability of the stoves is not as assured. This raises the question of whether the stoves and similar social innovations are in and of themselves a sustainable alternative to what is already being used.
Included in the Good Intentions post is also a quote from a vice president of the UN Foundation saying apart from distributing the stoves, “You’ll need a supply chain and business model that delivers them, not on a one-time basis, but as a continuing enterprise.”
And without such a supply chain, after the 2 to 5 years and without a steady supply channel, won’t the target beneficiaries just revert to the traditional kerosene and wood?
This is the oft neglected side of social enterprise. The question of how sustainable must the social entrepreneur’s efforts be? And does it mean that just because an enterprise is for profit that business effectiveness and value for money aside from other financial variables take second place to social impact?
The impetus to scrutinise the value of such socially-oriented innovative solutions has become more topical with the aid versus trade debate. Proponents for trade such as William Easterly have argued for business, being recently quoted in the Financial Times that: “current experience and history both speak loudly that the only real engine of growth out of poverty is private business ...”
And with such voices coupled with austerity measures among traditional donor countries (though the UK unexpectedly increased international aid), social business initiatives to mitigate government and market failures in developing countries are sure to claim the limelight.
Social entrepreneurship must include a strategy for achieving financial sustainability, and that includes ensuring that aside from the sentimental value of providing solar lighting, water pumps and eco-friendly stoves amongst other new technologies, that the nitty gritty business essentials such as supply chains and customer care are included in the package, from the outset.
Let’s remember that without the business model there can’t be a lasting and durable social impact.
Kibera Community Youth Programme is a community- based organization formed and run by a group of young people in the Kibera slum in Nairobi. The group have been manufacturing and selling solar torches going by the trade name Kibulight.
We recently got the opportunity to briefly interview Elizabeth Otieno, a Programme Manager of the organisation regarding the group’s solar energy project. She told us though the group started assembling the Kibulight torches last year, the organisation has been implementing solar project for years. In fact in 2007, KCYP won a clean energy award in Switzerland for their solar technology program.
The market reception for the torches has been promising, though Elizabeth told us that at the price of Kshs. 3,500 (approximately US $44), the torches were beyond the pockets of the majority of the market. The price could be cheaper if the group was in a position to manufacture all the components themselves.
Another marketing challenge the group faces is the influx of cheap products from China that have flooded the Kenyan alternative energy market. Nevertheless, in spite of the challenges the group face, they continue to produce the solar torches for increased security as well as promoting the use of clean energy in Nairobi.
December 2nd – 4th 2010: Invitation to Erevuka Kuwa Sonko: Youth Empowerment Forum
Venue: Kenyatta International Conference Center
Square Gold PR & Marketing is an Integrated Marketing & Communications firm that specializes in devising creative and innovative communication marketing strategies for corporate clients and institutions. In its effort to offer innovation, Square Gold is organizing a grand youth event dubbed Erevuka, Kuwa Sonko!
This is Kenya’s first interactive youth empowerment event with an aim to integrate the youth in Kenya’s economy building process through entrepreneurship. The 3-day extravaganza includes a youth exhibition, a business conference, career testing centre, ICT centre and a creative arts garage. With a fun mix of interaction, information and entertainment, this extravaganza will be the first of its kind in Kenya. The target audience for Erevuka, Kuwa Sonko! is youth aged between 18-35 years.
Square Gold invites you to interact and showcase your products with the key target market through exhibiting the project(s) at Erevuka, Kuwa Sonko! Exhibition fee is Ksh 20,000 for three days.
Erevuka, Kuwa Sonko! gives you direct access to consumers, venture capitalist, mentors etc. It will also provide you with extensive contact points for your brand, including an online viral campaign. The projected number of visitors for this event ranges from 8,000-10,000 due to its broad appeal.
Kindly contact Margaret Waithaka Email: maggie@squaregold.co.ke Cell: 0722791351 on participation and any questions or concerns.
Making the world clean and green, one idea at a time.
The Cleantech Open Global Ideas competition is a hunt for the most promising clean technology ideas anywhere in the world. One national winner from each country will then compete, in November, against the winners from other countries at the global finals in California.
This is your chance to join a major national project that can really make a difference.
The Cleantech Open is more than just a fun competition, more than just cool technology, more than just smart entrepreneurship.
Together, we’ll find, fund and foster the most promising cleantech ideas in the world - ideas that address today’s most challenging economic, environmental and energy challenges.
We’re looking for anything from revolutionary ways to generate clean energy, to better ways to filter water, to ideas about how government policies on climate change can foster new businesses.
And we’re not just looking for good ideas - we’re looking for concepts and technologies that can become great businesses that will reward entrepreneurship and bolster your country’s economy.
Signing up for the Ideas Competition
Contestants register through this easy, three-step process at:
Each idea needs to fit into one of these six categories:
1. Air Water & Waste - Ways to cut pollution
Entries focus on improving resource availability, conservation and pollution control. Air covers services, instruments and equipment related to emission control, treatment or reduction technologies. Also included are creative approaches to greenhouse gas reduction, such as carbon conversion and sequestration. Water covers treatment, storage, monitoring, recycling and conservation technologies. Waste covers waste management equipment; sorting; resource recovery processes; pollution prevention, control and treatment technology; and, waste reduction through innovative recycling processes and the creation of new recyclable materials such as bio-based plastics.
Examples:
• Storm-water, flood control and rainwater harvesting
• Smart irrigation
• Water filtration and disinfection
• Advanced filters and filtration (air or water)
• Carbon and GHG monitoring and control
• Carbon capture sequestration and storage
• Waste cleanup and remediation
2. Energy Efficiency - More efficient methods and devices
Entries include technologies that can significantly reduce wasted energy and help lessen the need for additional power plants.
Examples:
• Industrial process improvements
• Natural gas monitoring and control (industrial or residential)
• LED lighting
• Advanced lighting controls
• HVAC (Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning) solutions
• Natural gas controls
• Smart/User-friendly energy management systems
3. Renewable Energy - Replacements for fossil fuels
This category includes innovations that use, enable and accelerate the migration to renewable energy. Renewables encompass technologies that use waste streams to directly produce energy.
Examples:
• Thin film solar manufacture
• Concentrating solar photovoltaic
• Bio-based fuels
• Hydropower
• Advanced fluid-flow designs
• Wind power technologies
4. GreenBuilding - New kinds of buildings or materials
Reducing the environmental impact of building construction or operation through improved design or construction practices, new or innovative use of building materials and new hardware or software applications is the goal of this category. Technologies are applied directly to the built environment.
Examples:
• Insulation materials
• Cement alternatives
• Indoor air filtration systems
• Disaster relief and modular housing
• Low VOC carpeting and flooring
• Water saving toilets, showers and plumbing
• Recycled materials for use in building material
5. Smart Power, Green Grid, Energy Storage - Better ways of carrying/storing electricity
This category encourages creating links between information technologies and electricity delivery that give industrial, commercial and residential consumers greater control over when and how their energy is delivered and used. It includes improvements in all forms of energy storage, from battery technology for consumer-scale products to chemical, metal, biological or other approaches to storage of utility-scale energy, as well as methods for controlling or increasing the efficiency of energy storage or energy transmission.
Examples:
• Wireless metering and use of real-time pricing information
• Network architecture for power management
• Hydrogen storage
• Battery form factor improvements
• Advanced fuel cell membranes
• Power storage
• Transmission efficiency
6. Transportation - Greener cars, buses, trucks or planes
This category encompasses transportation and mobile technology applications that improve fuel efficiency, reduce air pollution, reduce oil consumption or reduce vehicle travel (not limited to automobiles). Technologies are applied directly to transportation systems or vehicles.
Examples:
• Fleet and route management systems
• Logistics management
• Carpooling solutions
• All electric vehicles
• Flex fuel engines and applications
• Drivetrain conversion kits
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Who is behind the Global Cleantech Open Ideas Competition?
A: The competition is organized by the Cleantech Open (www.cleantechopen.com). Through its annual cleantech Business Competition and mentorship program (the world’s largest), the Cleantech Open has helped hundreds of clean technology startups bring their breakthrough ideas to fruition since 2006, and helped its alumni raise over $150M and create thousands of green-collar jobs.
Q: What is the mission of the Cleantech Open?
A: The mission of the Cleantech Open is to find, fund and foster find, fund, and foster companies with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental, and economic challenges.
Through this mission, the Cleantech Open encourages the development of clean technology companies that foster a healthy, natural environment - companies that provide environmental benefits in the areas of renewable energy, energy efficiency, pollution reduction and resource protection and conservation. The Ideas Competition is the first step to help entrepreneurs build a successful cleantech business.
Q: Who can enter the competition?
A: Anyone looking to turn their clean technology idea into a thriving business can apply. Entrants can be sole proprietors, teams or early-stage companies. To be eligible, your entity must have received less than $500,000US in external private financing. Grant funding and any money from friends and family are excluded from this $500,000 limit.
Q: What is Sustainability?
A: Sustainability is defined as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Source: Brundtland Commission, 1987).
Cleantech Open’s Sustainability Program strives to highlight the relevance of and promote the philosophy of sustainability throughout everything Cleantech Open does. We ask competitors to have a positive impact on the environment and the broader community, and to make this part of every phase of development - not just for the end-use application. Your idea should deliver products or services that have a net positive environmental impact.
Q: How many prizes are there and what is included?
A: There is one national winner for each country who will receive press recognition for their award and go on to compete at the global pitch competition in San Francisco on November 17.
The global winner will receive at least $100,000US worth of startup services and have access to seasoned advisors in the essential areas that will help ensure their ideas can be translated into a business. The Cleantech Open advisor community includes specialists in business plan development, intellectual property protection, marketing, PR, sustainability and fundraising. Starting with a plan to leverage their Global Cleantech Open award, the advisor team will develop a plan specific to the global winner’s needs.
Q: What does it cost to enter the competition?
A: It costs nothing to enter the Global Cleantech Open. All incidental costs, such as producing a video or traveling to the Awards Gala, are however the responsibility of each contestant.
Q: What is cleantech?
A: Cleantech has been described by Clean Edge, a clean technology research firm, as “a diverse range of products, services, and processes that harness renewable materials and energy sources, dramatically reduce the use of natural resources, and cut or eliminate emissions and wastes.” The terms “cleantech” and “green tech” are often used interchangably to describe products, services and practices that are environmentally friendly.
About the Youth Interactive Portal for Enterprise (YIPE)
The Youth Interactive Portal for Enterprise (www.yipekenya.org) is an online service providing business skills training, information on how to access finance, business ideas & opportunities and advice on how to register a business to Kenyan youth entrepreneurs.
The portal is the first of its kind in East Africaspecifically targeting the youth with free information and resources aimed at ensuring business sustainability. On a wider scale, the portal also provides valuable information to students, corporates, financial institutions, NGOs, government policy makers as well as development agencies seeking to promote economic empowerment. For more information, visit www.yipekenya.org, and follow @yipeorg on Twitter.
About Cleantech Open
The Cleantech Open (www.cleantechopen.com) finds, funds, and fosters entrepreneurs with ideas, technologies, and products that address today’s most urgent energy, climate and economic challenges. Through its one-of-a-kind annual business competition, ideas competition and entrepreneurial development programs, the Cleantech Open has helped hundreds of clean technology startups bring their breakthrough ideas to fruition since 2006, and helped its alumni raise over $150m and create thousands of green-collar jobs.
About Global Entrepreneurship Week
With the goal to inspire young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity, Global Entrepreneurship Week will encourage youth to think big, turn their ideas into reality, and make their mark. From November 15-21, 2010, millions of young people around the world will join a growing movement to generate new ideas and seek better ways of doing things. Tens of thousands of activities are being planned in dozens of countries. Global Entrepreneurship Week is founded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and Enterprise UK. For more information, visit www.unleashingideas.org, and follow @unleashingideas on Twitter.
It doesn't matter how long an aspiring entrepreneur takes in planning their business. There will always be factors that are unpredictable and beyond their control. Don Rainey, a general partner at Grotech Ventures recently submitted an article to VentureBeat titled “8 things I wish I knew before starting a business”.
The article makes for great reading with real nuggets of advice. Aspiring entrepreneurs are fortunate to get this information now. But for operational entrepreneurs - of course we wish we had read this article before, but there is always room for learning and adapting. After all that’s the life of an entrepreneur.
