First Step Economic Opportunity Zone: Challenges of Running a Juice Factory
“I can sell you 14 235 pineapples”, that’s what a farmer said to Claudio Scotto, CEO of Africa Felix Juice. 14 235 pineapples – quite an impressive figure at first glance. If you put it into the context of Claudio Scotto, you will end up with a different interpretation: A lot of small scale farmers […]
Commercial Food Processing Entrepreneurs Sierra Leone
I am lucky enough to just arrive at the right time of the year: The month of Independence Day. The Independence Day is a huge event for all Sierra Leoneans and a lot of activities, street celebrations and cultural events are coming with it. This gives me the opportunity to dive into the commercial world […]
Business Booster Project Sierra Leone
Wednesday, 17th April 2013, 18:00 local time: Arrival at the airport in Freetown. Add to it 5 more hours for taxi, waiting, the slowest ferry ride I have seen in my life and another taxi, that’s the time I arrived in downtown Freetown, Sierra Leone. But even though transport and a whole lot of other […]
Creating Opportunities in Rural East Africa
For most young people in rural communities in Africa, opportunities are scarce. With only 28 percent of Africa’s labor force holding stable wage-paying jobs, and most of those concentrated in urban areas, rural life can appear to offer little prospect for advancement. On a recent trip to Kenya, I met 26-year-old Alice Micere from Njukiini, […]
What is the Business Booster?
The Business Booster pilot project is a joint program of the Youth Employment Network (YEN), UNIDO and Endeva. The project seeks to pilot a holistic multi-stakeholder approach to increasing the earnings of youth-led cooperatives in Sierra Leone, by enabling them to access premium markets such as the US and/or the high value domestic market where […]
Four Tips for Becoming an Intrapreneur
Sometimes, the hardest part about becoming an intrapreneur is just getting started. Intrapreneurs improve existing systems by advocating for CSR, sustainability, shared value, or engaging with the community. They are internal innovators who innovate within a larger company or organization, as opposed to within startups – which are generally expected to be more innovative. I’m […]
Creating Second-Class Employees? The problem with social intrapreneurship
I was fortunate to join a discussion this month hosted by Business Fights Poverty on what social intrapreneurs can learn from social entrepreneurs. The discussion was lively and rich, and I encourage you to read it for yourself. But one fundamental question did come up in the comments that I think deserves more consideration: Why […]
Building an early stage ecosystem for Africa’s growing community of entrepreneurs
VC4Africa is building a leading peer-to-peer network that connects African based entrepreneurs with the resources (network, knowledge and capital) they require to realize their potential. Last week we announced the launch of DEMO Africa 2013, the second time this landmark event will take place on the continent, and already we are receiveing some quality applications. […]
A boost for small retailers in Latin America
Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, SABMiller Latin America Whilst other parts of the world have struggled with economic uncertainty and – at best – stagnating growth, Latin Americans maintained steady levels of economic growth and financial resilience. This success is also reflected in other, developmental factors: in 2012 poverty fell to a 30-year low, and over the […]
Business, Health and the Road Ahead
I remember chatting a year ago with Deepak Chopra, the holistic health leader, in the Green Room of the annual GBCHealth Conference. GBCHealth is a coalition of companies that are addressing global health issues, and Deepak was surprised to see such a wide range of committed businesses in deep conversations on improving the health of […]
Supporting Retailers in Latin America
I am a strong believer in the power of enterprise. Small and micro entrepreneurs in Latin America – as is the case around the world – are drivers of inclusive growth and local jobs. They lift people out of poverty and create new empowerment opportunities for women. They meet the needs of local consumers, as […]
The Challenge Of Selling To Consumers At The BoP
What do dairy cooperatives, micro-finance institutions, post offices, mobile phones, boys on bikes and women who walk all have in common? They are all potential channels to reach consumers at the base of the pyramid (BOP) with products ranging from agro-information to water-filters, including lighting, medicine, stoves and household goods. The challenge of selling to […]
Sowing the Seeds for Growth in Colombia
Laura Patiño, the visionary behind Picados San Juan, with modest rural roots in La Unión, Colombia is helping generate growth and stable employment in a region once overrun by contraband trade. Laura returned to La Unión following a scholarship-funded degree in Agricultural Sciences and Production with a clear aim; “to generate development, create employment” and […]
Sustainable Sourcing: Unilever Challenges Its Own Value Chain
This week we announced that more than a third of our agricultural raw materials are now sourced sustainably. This is a significant milestone on our journey towards a target of 100 percent by 2020. Currently, our sustainable sourcing figure stands at 36 percent – up from 24 percent in 2011. We are very proud of […]
Creating Sustainable Business through Social Intrapreneurism
The world needs more change-makers: men and women who don’t just see things as they are, but who imagine things as they might be – and do something about it! This last few weeks, it felt as though another category of change-maker is starting to get real traction: the social intrapreneur. Social Intrapreneurs are people […]
Reshaping the business of social change
My name is Monique Villa and I run an international, award-winning organization in rapid expansion. My mission is to create value. My motto is global impact. I am CEO of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the corporate charity of the world’s leading source of news and information. I am a business woman working in philanthropy. To […]
An Industrial Concept for the BoP: Affordable Fire and Earthquake Resistant Houses
The recent earthquakes show that not earthquakes are killing most people but the insufficient built houses. Glass reinforced pipes are very popular in the gas, oil and water industry as they are heat resistant, lightweight and almost indestructible. They consist of sand (50%) polyester resin (30%) and glass fiber (20%). With diameters up to 4 […]
From good to great – how to scale up successful programmes
One of the challenges in the international development sector relates to what is sometimes described as “pilot paralysis”. If that’s an unfair description of the fact that many successful development programmes seem to get stuck at a relatively small scale, then perhaps we can agree it’s a cause for concern that not enough impactful programmes […]
Why Charity Alone isn't the Answer to End Poverty
Over the last two decades “social entrepreneurship” has emerged as a widespread phenomenon in development work. This term is not a mere buzz word or development jargon. It has recently become a strategic and a conscious shift away from the image of the poor as passive individuals waiting for handouts, towards a perception of the […]
Why Charity Alone isn’t the Answer to End Poverty
Over the last two decades “social entrepreneurship” has emerged as a widespread phenomenon in development work. This term is not a mere buzz word or development jargon. It has recently become a strategic and a conscious shift away from the image of the poor as passive individuals waiting for handouts, towards a perception of the […]