"A view of Africa and Africans with a focus on entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, practical remedies and other self sustaining activities.".....Emeka Okafor
A little over a year ago, Rwandan Christine Murebwayire graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women program. A widow and mother of four with one adopted child, Christine runs a bananawine and juice-manufacturingco-op. Over the course of her six-month training, Christine and fellow classmates created detailed and actionable business plans, and participated in a range of follow-up support services, including one-on-one mentoring and advising on accessing capital. Watch related video of Emelienne Nyirumana, the Founder and Treasurer of Cocoki:
As small-scale renewable energy becomes cheaper, more reliable and more efficient, it is providing the first drops of modern power to people who live far from slow-growing electricity grids and fuel pipelines in developing countries. Although dwarfed by the big renewable energy projects that many industrialized countries are embracing to rein in greenhouse gas emissions, these tiny systems are playing an epic, transformative role...In Africa, nascent markets for the systems have sprung up in Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi and Ghana as well as in Kenya, said Francis Hillman, an energy entrepreneur who recently shifted his Eritrea-based business, Phaesun Asmara, from large solar projects financed by nongovernmental organizations to a greater emphasis on tiny rooftop systems.
In addition to these small solar projects, renewable energy technologies designed for the poor include simple subterranean biogas chambers that make fuel and electricity from the manure of a few cows, and “mini” hydroelectric dams that can harness the power of a local river for an entire village.
Hash in Afrigadget on the Wood Bark Paper production method:
courtesy of Hash
In a rather laborious process, they first pulp the bark, then lay it out on a big sheet and submerge it in water. It’s then taken out after it has settled evenly and is decorated while still wet with flowers. Once dried, they can create everything from cards to boxes. The cards and more elaborate items sell for around $1 each, which nets a healthy profit from the original cost of the bark, which is a couple dollars per kilo.
A company simply identifying itself as West Africa Data Centres is taking the bold step to launch the first commercial large-scale data centre, in West Africa. In their own words: West Africa Data Centres is opening its first data centre in Accra in 2011. We will be the first commercial carrier-neutral co-location facility serving the entire west African region. WADC is a private consortium of established international investors who are living and based in Ghana.
The 2010 Ghanaian rom-com release The Perfect Picture not only has become a huge commercial success throughout the continent and also winning for director Shirley Frimpong-Manso the African Movie Academy Awards this year for Best Director of the Year. The film, which deals with the love lives of three successful and attractive Ghanaian women, has been compared to The Best Man and of course, naturally, Sex and the City...[continue reading]
A welcome addition to the space of vehiclemanufacturing, Mobius Motors. NextBillion interviews the founder Joel Jackson, of on the reasons behind starting the company:
Mobius One
...we must re-imagine the car. Mobius simplifies its vehicles by removing expensive technologies such as air conditioning, interior fixtures and even glass windows while still maximizing function with good suspension, handling and storage. We also simplify our production process by integrating off-the-shelf parts within a durable and safe tubular steel frame. The result: low-cost high-functioning modular vehicles built specifically for the needs of developing world consumers. In short, a platform for mobility.
First -- what are the key cultural, social, technological and economic dimensions of the Maker Movement? Obviously -- it begins with the Makers themselves -- who find making, tinkering, inventing, problem-solving, discovering and sharing intrinsically rewarding. These Makers have a strong "Do It Yourself" and "Do It With Others" mindset -- and making is an important element of their personal identity. That's why the tag line of Make Magazine is "technology on your own time."...Economically -- we are seeing the early beginnings of a powerful Maker innovation ecosystem. New products and services will allow individuals to not only Design it Yourself, but Make it Yourself and Sell it Yourself. For example, Tech Shops are providing access to 21st century machine tools, in the same way that Kinkos gave millions of small and home-based business access to copying, printing, and shipping, and the combination of cloud computing and Software as a Service is enabling "lean startups" that can explore a new idea for the cost of ramen noodles.Makers are also becoming successful entrepreneurs. Dale just wrote a compelling story about Andrew Archer -- the 22-year-old founder of Detroit-based Robotics Redefined. As a teenager, Andrew started off entering robotics competitions and making printed circuit boards on the kitchen table. He is now building customized robots that transport inventory on the factory floors of auto companies. With more entrepreneurs like Andrew -- we could see a bottom-up renaissance of American manufacturing.
The report ( by McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health) that prompted this piece (see below) speaks to examples of these underutilized resources in African Labs. Written by Peter Singer and Ken Simiyu its findings contest that:
Despite challenges, components of health innovation exist in Africa and, though limited, diverse activity in health innovation is occurring;
The emerging innovation systems are driven by local health concerns, not external interests. Local, regional and global dynamics affect health innovation;
Institutions used innovative financing mechanisms and partnerships to their benefit;
All countries put strong emphasis on plant medicine as a local asset for innovation
Fundamental to success are investing in research and development to generate solution-oriented knowledge, providing incentives for entrepreneurs, and building institutional strength to help facilitate commercialization of research results;
Africa's health innovation systems are increasingly integrated into the global knowledge ecology, and benefit from extensive international partnerships;
Linkages between groups are sparse to date, but hold potential for building stronger health innovation systems. Business incubation through facilities such as science innovation centers will be an important mechanism for fostering industrial clustering and raising economic productivity.
They outline a myriad number of "stagnant " technologies which include:
A low-cost dipstick technology developed at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra, Ghana, for quick, easy, village diagnosis of schistosoma, a parasitic disease that affects more than 50% of people in some areas of Africa.
A product called Sunguprot in Kenya from the plant Tylosema Fassoglensis, whose developers claim it can help manage HIV symptoms. Lack of advanced scientific equipment to isolate compounds and funding to carry out clinical trials have affected further development and validation; and
An easy-to-use, inexpensive, WHO-approved portable medical-waste incinerator, developed at Makerere University, Uganda, that could solve the problem of hospital waste management in rural areas, especially during mass polio immunization and similar programmes. The incinerator uses no fuel other than the medical waste and achieves temperatures of 800 degrees C.
Courtesy of Ken Simiyu, Medical Waste Incinerator Invented by Moses Musaazi of Makerere University
Meanwhile, at the International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology in Kenya, researchers have patented human odors that effectively repel mosquitoes. While there is a need to determine formulations through further research, negotiations are underway with a multinational company.
It concludes by making the following points:
"Our message to international agencies, donors and African governments: support these enterprises and nurture their potential, because they can make a major contribution to better health in developing countries – and to their own health. At the end of the day, this is about enabling people to solve their own problems, not only using science but also combining it with entrepreneurship."
In addition to the traditional players "international agencies, donors and African governments" we would argue for the inclusion of the participants and models mentioned earlier. They are already coalescing, why not work together?
Herds of The Fathers is a company that offers leather backpacks, duffle bags and mini backpacks at the moment and plans to expand into other types of accessories for men.
Answering a question on future plans:
Where do you guys see Herds of The Fathers in the next 5-10 years?
Any plans for your own store location in the future? And if so, in what city would you build it in?
In the next five to ten years, we want the world to see Herds as a well established company that commands attention in the industry. A brand that people associate with a lifestyle. We want Herds products to become "must have" pieces. The idea of having a store is in the future, the internet is a great way to reach people and sell products, but there is no better feeling than having your own store and your own displays...[continue reading]
...so that students, like ourselves, can drive their own learning by interacting with peers from all over the world who share the same courseware. With Bookneto, college students who are often limited to their Professor's understanding of the material covered in their classes can now expand the breadth of their knowledge and perspective by interacting with their peers from different schools, all over the world.
With Bookneto, students from all over the world can upload and tag academic material in any format and have it displayed in a specially designed reader so any other student on the platform can add more knowledge and context to it by highlighting sections of the text and starting a discussion thread on it. “We think this is peer learning at its best” said Chief Operating Officer, Pierre Arys. “College students are often limited to their Professor’s understanding of course content and now we can broaden their perspective by providing a forum for them to meaningfully interact with their colleagues from different schools.”
Sailesh Chudasama's company is phased to eventually become an all-in-one integrated coconut processor, the facility will:
...start by converting coconut wastes like husks, shells, leaves and tender coconut waste into environment friendly products like Coir Fibre, Coco Peat, Coconut Charcoal, Wood Vinegar and Tar. Over the next six years, we intend to also be producing Coir Yarn, Door Mats, Geo-Textile, Edible Coconut Oil, Copra Cake and Coconut Bio-Diesel. These are all very Environment friendly products made from Coconut wastes and Coconuts used sustainably-BID Network
A key aspect of the post-harvest process in the fishing industry is smoking the catch. For purposes of preservation and or flavor enhancment this value added step is yet to reach its potential if compared to its worldwide counterparts. The following videos document existing practices and provide how to's for the aspiring fishsmoker.
Founded by Ikenna Orizu "...Tru Spot! is a social music platform designed to support African artists, fans, local music and the entertainment world at large. Tru Spot! connects users who share similar tastes and brings the artists they love closer to them via interviews and chat sessions. The site also provides live and custom radio streams, music ringtones for your mobile phones and wallpapers..."-IP
...banana leaves are a packaging solution that has existed for thousands of years, still exists today, and that could benefit the environment by simply expanding their use to new areas
Furthermore:
...the leaves of the banana tree are used most often as (quite dynamic and attractive) serving vessels for everyday meals in South Indian and Filipino cuisine. Hindus and Buddhists both use the leaves for religious ceremonies and offerings, and the fully biodegradable and bright green leaves are used as trays of sorts. But that’s not all!Banana leaves are said to impart a special flavor to foods and can even be used to steam food, especially cha lua, a Vietnamese sausage. Banana leaf rice is a dish unto itself in South Indian cooking, and it’s usually served with a vegetarian curry.
Sack gardening became increasingly popular during the post-election violence (within Kenya) in 2007/08 when food prices rose by up to 50% and access from volatile sites like Mathare to regular food sources became a challenge. A number of non-profit groups, school and self-help organisations began to promote the efficient, low-maintenance and low-cost sack gardens as a way of enhancing food security. Spinach, kale, chard, peppers, spring onions and tomatoes could be grown with relative ease for household use. Some families began selling their surplus harvest to neighbours while others grouped together to create micro-enterprises around their collective crops, including nurseries to supply the growing flock of Nairobi’s sack gardeners with seedlings.
Courtesy of Random Specific
What started as a way of improving food security has blossomed into a number of entrepreneurial ventures, driving an increased demand for fresh, local produce. Folks I met seemed proud of the independence that their doorstep gardens could provide. Many residents are rural migrants with roots in farming and are rekindling agricultural knowledge they had left behind, via their sack based micro-farms. Meanwhile, for Festus, business is booming – with the community showing more interest in what can be grown closer to home and from trusted sources.
How did the idea for creating MalawiSoc come about?
Generally speaking, social bookmarking is a method that enables Internet users to organize, store, manage and search for bookmarks of resources online. It also enables Internet users across the web to collaborate with one another by sharing their bookmarks. Because of my blogging activities, I have been a social bookmarking sites, such Digg,Redit and StumbleUpon, for the past few years. My experience with these sites inspired me to create a similar site specifically devoted to blogs and news about Malawi
...they started with necklaces which were sold locally and then from as far away as Kenya and Tanzania where safari companies sold them to tourists. Most of their pieces are made of materials which have been recycled. The Christmas decorations are made from beads which were created from local bottles melted down in a workshop.
...until the 1980s, motor spare parts sold in the country generally came either from the "original" manufacturer (Peugeot, Mercedes, etc.) or were counterfeit copies made in Taiwan. However, early in that decade, a number of factories sprang up in the eastern region of Nigeria, particularly in the town of Nnewi, whose large Nkwo market for used and new motor spare parts had grown into one of the largest in the country, with offshoots in many other towns and cities across Nigeria. By 2004, there were more than 17 modern, large and medium-sized factories in Nnewi, using imported technology and producing a wide variety of spare parts for automobiles, trucks, and motorcycles.
Together with engineering firms and machine shops, a number of aluminium foundries, and 68 smaller, less formal factories also producing spare parts, these businesses employed some 8000 to 9000 persons. Some of these factories exported to neighbouring countries in West Africa, the Middle East and even Europe. One advertised in the Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire phone directory.
The goal of this project is to engage several hundred womenfarmers across several villages in generating collectively some 50,000 to 100,000 kg of shellfish meats and TSh50-100 million in annual revenue (more than $100 per farmer per year). This activity will provide a sustained and improved income stream for women shellfish farmers on the island, where most people live on less than $1/day. Together with the training capacity built by the project in local organizations and in the villages themselves, our work is developing a new, ecologically and economically sustainable source of protein for local consumption and income for women in coastal villages...[continue reading]
Fela & Fola are quite a dynamic duo. These entrepreneurial brothers are originally from Nigeria but now reside and are based out of Edmonton, Alberta Canada where they are students in college. What makes these two so amazing, however, are their extra-curricular activities. While most people spend their weekends typing papers, going to parties, solving mathematical equations, playing sports, wasting the day away on facebook and/or twitter, etc., these two young men are doing all of those things PLUS managing their own company: Alex Folzi. Alex Folzi is the name of the brand that these brothers founded in January of this year and registered/branded in April. So far, Alex Folzi is a line of vintage inspired trunks that are available in a wide range of colors and in a classic brown print.
On their target customer:
We designed this collection for all sorts of people and all sorts of age group as well. Our target originally was from ages of 15-25 but a month after we launched the products the numbers increased more than we expected. We had skateboarders, dapper kids, preppy ones, working class, street style, vintage collectors.. e.t.c. All sorts of people and ages rushed it. We came out with unique, elegant and colorful design. That, in relation to fashion today, is on point. So it made it a wider market range for our brand and it also increased the publicity as well.
It is principally consumed as a snack and valued for its ease of storage, long shelf-life and high consumer acceptability. Because of its distinct and exotic flavour, kilishi has further gained wide acceptance not only in Nigeria but also across the sub-Saharan region and beyond. It is made from high quality beef obtained from the fillet and hind quarters of the remains of the animal. The product is sliced into thin sheets, covered in a preparation of a variety of spices and crushed groundnuts, after which they are spread to dry. Following this, each piece is then grilled and laid out to cool.
Kilishi is a tropical intermediate moisture meat product that is prepared essentially from beef slices, infused in slurry of defatted groundnut paste and spices and then sun-dried. The ability of the product to keep for several months at room temperature is fast making the product a house-hold name. Kilishi is enjoyed by both young and old
...manages and controls a kilishi sales distribution network, it also maintains a cordial relationship between the company and its customers as they would ensure that the kilishi is spread virtually all parts of the country. Because of the high demand for the kilishi meat, we have as part of the company structure, a standard and well equipped kilishi eatery outlet called (kilishi finesse) butcher and sausage where other delicacies such as shawama pizza, suya, teas and coffeeshop, fresh and hot kilishi.
Vehicles have many plastic components and I have a flourishing plastic company, which is among the biggest in Africa. So I began to research into how many vehicles components that could be sourced locally and I discovered that a lot of them could be produced here. That was how I took off.
Outlining their product range:
Innoson Buses
We manufacture different types of vehicles and they include Pick-up vans, buses, Sports Utility Vans (SUV). We also manufacture tricycles popularly called keke NAPEP. Our vehicles are built with the state of the roads in the country in mind. We know that our roads are not good so we decided to make our vehicles rugged enough to withstand the shocks on the road. So our vehicles are more rugged than the imported ones because we are the ones that are wearing the shoes so we know where it is pinching us. Unlike vehicles that were manufactured for London or New York roads where roads are smooth...[continue reading]
The GO Ingenuity Award (GIA) is awarded to artists, inventors, and small business
entrepreneurs to motivate the next generation of progressive thinkers to assume leadership
roles and improve their communities.GO Campaign will award a maximum of five one-year, one-time fellowship grants, ranging from $500 to $2,500 each, to individual applicants who are eager to share their skills withmarginalized youth in developing countries.
The oliveoil will be packed in Ethiopia with a portion pack machine in 10g packages. First imported oil from Turkey. On the 60ha, 21000 European olive trees from Italy will be planted. When olives are coming up, these will be crushed with a moveable system on a trailer. Also wild olives will be crushed with this system on location. 40 farmers will be trained by a specialist after this training these farmers will train 5000 farmers in the area.
We attract the world’s most brilliant and promising entrepreneurs who are dedicated to having a globally significant social or environmental impact with their ventures. Through an intensive application process, these early-stage entrepreneurs are chosen to become Unreasonable Fellows and attend the Unreasonable Institute. Additionally, we attract serial entrepreneurs, globally recognized thought leaders and innovators, and leading investors to mentor our Fellows These Unreasonable Mentors become the crux of our model throughout the Institute....Unreasonable Fellows will connect with our Capital Partners, 30 of the world’s top funds and foundations in the impact-investment space. Each fund will send out a lead investor to live with our Unreasonable Fellows during our Summer Institutes. This will ensure our entrepreneurs build meaningful relationships with potential funding sources beyond their immediate funding needs and across the life cycle of their enterprise. Additionally, through unprecedented exposure and pitch events, Unreasonable Fellows have the chance to showcase their ventures to leading investors and supporters in the nation’s top entrepreneurial hub.
Traditional glass beads of Ghana are often referred to as Krobo beads, the Krobo mountains being the main area of production. These beads are made from recycledglass. Bottles and other glass items are first washed and sorted by colours. They are then broken into small fragments for making translucent beads, or pounded with a metal mortar and pestle, and sieved to get a very fine powder for making powder glass beads. Glass powder of different colours is obtained using ceramic dyes.
...acinema chain that has eight cinemas across Nigeria, 2 purpose-built and the rest conversions (150-400 seats). It may be small but it has ambitious plans to roll-out across the continent. According to Cinemart’s Dayo Ogunyemi:”We’re looking to put an emphasis on standard 400 seaters and build multiplexes with 4-6 screens.”
“With the number of screens we’re planning across Africa, it will be a game changer. By the end of the first full year of operation in July 2011, we intend to have 100 cinemas across Africa. There’s a minimum scale of 25-30 cinemas per country so we’re planning 50 screens in Nigeria and 25 apiece in Kenya and South Africa. The bottom 80% of audiences in South Africa have the same purchasing power as their equivalents in Kenya and Nigeria. We want to create high-end cinemas for low-end audiences in South Africa, giving a similar experience to what you find in Sandton in the townships. And we’ll not just be offering Nollywood but also talking to local players. A relatively tiny percentage of movies make it out into commercial release.”
Hash takes a look at the increased recognition of innovation within Africa.In this post he focuses on a generally unheralded type of innovator-the hardcore industrial type:
...take the example of Maker Faire Africa participant Alex Odundo founder of Sifa Machinery from Kisumu in Western Kenya. Alex has spent 5 years coming up with cheaper and more efficient tools to process sisal and make rope. He did this with the mechanical use of a processing machine called Sisal Decorticator, that adds value to the sisal by turning it into rope that can be sold for 100 shillings. This nets him 95 Kenya shillings in profit per kilo.
He’s spent 5 long years refining his machines, selling them and building new ones. Going from sisal processing to rope making with the tools and engines he can fabricate and buy locally. He’s an example of the inventor-entrepreneur who won’t give up, and is trying to build a real business of his niche product. He’s akin to the Charles Goodyear of local rope manufacturing.
What Alex represents is the hardcore inventor, the industrial, non-sexy side of innovation that we don’t often hear about. What usually surfaces, and what I talk about a lot here (and what I’m sure we’ll talk about at all these other events) is the cool, sleek mobile and internet solutions and products.
