Doing business in Africa
Africa is a land of incredible business opportunities, success stories we publish in the next lines for normal people like us to prove that there are many ways to make money in Africa.
It is strange that some people still used description impoverished continent when he talks about Africa, how can this be? Everywhere you look at it from the far right to the far left sees opportunities to make money, which were not present or are easily overlooked in other parts of the world.
However, it is surprising that many people still do not see mine opportunities in Africa, including Africans themselves.
However fortuitously, there are a developing wide variety of business people who are already taking advantage of the lucrative business opportunities in the continent and the key to their success is to see things quite differently from the rest of the people.
The majority of these projects on the philosophy that there are problems facing projects and potential opportunities, but while they complain about the challenges they face there are others invent a creating solutions to these problems and earn them money as well projects.
In this file we look at some of the success stories of entrepreneurs and companies in Africa, which started from scratch and has achieved remarkable success of what was in the book (101 ways to make money in Africa) authored by Professor (John Paul Iwuoha).
Paul says in his presentation to the idea of his book, the inspiring success stories prove that there are many ways to make money in Africa, if you're determined enough, you can also make you change your life success story!
Explore some of these experiments and test methods are interesting door may open to make money in Africa.
These are examples of how doing business in Africa:
1- Solerebels (Ethiopia)
It originated (Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu), 36-year-old, in the village of Zinbaurk one of the poorest villages on the outskirts of Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia.
She said, she got the idea from its observable because most artisans in her community who make beautiful shoes without a job and the poor.
It owns Alemu Today her company, (Solerebels), which has become one of the trademarks of the African shoes the most popular and fastest growing in the world, where it sells its brand eco-friendly shoes in more than 50 countries including the United States, Canada, Japan and Switzerland.
The shoes of this brand is unique because it is 100 hand-made using the source local materials% was recycled, such as old tires and textiles made from organic materials spun manually.
Some years ago, (Solerebels) became the primary footwear company in the world that take care of their adoption by the fair trade, which means projects that contribute to the fight against poverty within its efforts to avoid the side effects of the liberalization of world trade and to achieve justice between the parties concerned organization.
Girl (Bethlehem) bearing the name of the holy city for Christians in Palestine project to run local artisans, to become a global brand with a successful commercial project significantly contributed to the creation of employment opportunities and improves livelihoods in her community.
Young black began global brand launched a project in 2004, less than 10 thousand dollars collected from members of her family with a capital Today, her company has more than 100 employees and about 200 local supplier of local raw materials, and opened a number of independent retail in North America, Europe and Asia sales outlets.
Although its beginnings are very modest, but it has annual sales of up to a million dollars, according to the expectations of «Bethlehem» and expansion plans, the company cans sales of $ 10 million achieved by next year.
And supported its success Bethlehem has recently launched a new project called «leather Republic» specialized in luxury leather goods such as bags, belts of Commerce, and other leather accessories other than shoes.
Bethlehem has been selected as a Young Global Leader for 2011 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, held in Switzerland, and was the winner in the distribution of Africa Awards for Entrepreneurship in the same year ceremony.
2- Africa felix juice (Sierra Leone)
Africa is considered one of the largest producers of fruits in the world, but due to poor processing and storage, lost a large part of the fruits harvested each year.
In some countries, this situation is so bad in dealing with fruit concentrates and leads them to be imported from abroad, though, provided locally.
For example, did you know that Nigeria, which produces oranges in large quantities, is still spending more than $ 140 million to import concentrate orange for the manufacture of fruit juice?
Africa produces juice Felix Company based in Sierra Leone concentrates of mango and pineapple, which are harvested in all parts of the country.
Mango Company bought more than 4,000 farmers from small farmers in Sierra Leone, where fruits gathered in its processing facility, where it is processed by sorting and washing times for juice concentrates the main ingredient for the manufacture of fruit juices.
Through the purchase of fruit from small-scale farmers, the company has created added value in millions of dollars of mango, which was rotting away and goes to waste each year.
Are exported concentrates, mango and pineapple juice produced by the company mainly to Europe, where they are used for the manufacture of fruit juices and flavors of food processing, these were concentrates first major export commodity from Sierra Leone after the devastating civil war for nearly ten years.
3- Takamoto Biogas (Kenya)
At first the report pointed out that there is an opportunity to make money with anything in Africa, it was not just a joke.
Founded in March 2011 the company «Takamoto» team of Americans and Kenyans, for the production of bio-gas system allows for jam oxen, milk production in the countryside to convert cow manure into clean, cheap fuel, a bio-gas, which is used for cooking, lighting and heating.
The company «Takamoto» providing pay-as-you-go customers in exchange for a bio-gas, which drives small farmers who are most of the customers a small fee to install a biogas system, and then pay a small monthly installments, because they use bio-gas.
The company monitors the biogas system through GSM property or which send information on preserving the unity of operation and payment of invoices, as well as bio-gas system, the availability of household appliances, which operates biogas and as of January 2014, benefited 100 farmers in Kenya of the project.
it is expected that there are approximately two million small farmers from the dairy producers in Kenya who cook healthy fuel is one of the main causes of premature death in Africa, as well as the cost of firewood and charcoal high.
And it provides the company «Takamoto» alternative energy effectively and appropriately to rural communities and archived at the same time, forest resources, and generates money at the same time.
4- SimplePay (Nigeria)
as compared to the rest of the arena charge systems in Africa belong to the great (old school extent) Most of the transactions are still conducted in cash, something that cannot be comfortable at all.
Note (Shimon Anunoby), traders in Nigeria are paying almost $ 3,000, in order to be able to accept payments online and in that time were not service «PayPal» available to users in Nigeria, and most of Africa, the largest payment platform in the world.
So, in January 2013, Shimon launched SimplePay service a financial portfolio on the Internet and mobile phone that allows users to easily pay for about 150 different services such as recharging the mobile phone and subscription TV stations and taxes, school fees and donations the church ... etc.
The cost to participate in the service and one dollars for registration and which is much less than the exorbitant costs of electronic payment gateways, as well as dealing with unsecured credit card for recording data on multiple websites.
Experts called «SimplePay» «PayPal» Nigeria currently has more than 10 thousand registered user, mostly traders, more than 30 thousand of non-registered users.
In a country like Nigeria is the ninth largest country in terms of Internet users, more than 60 million people look great growth prospects for investors is no wonder that a series of local and international investors are competing to have them share in the market has to pay them the largest platform in Africa.
Shortly after the founding of the company, borrowed 300,000 dollars from seedstar foundation Swiss specialized in finance expansion projects, which confirms that it is on the right road, and is currently seeking a loan of $ 10 million to support his plan to increase the number of subscribers has to 16 million next year .
5 - Omega Schools (Ghana) and schools Bridge International (Kenya)
We reached the level and quality of education in many parts of Africa to a bad situation. In a continent with more than 50% of its people under the age of 25 years, there is only one out of every three children out of school, and it is estimated that more than 60 million African children have been up to the stage adolescence and lacks even simple studying, writing and mathematics talents.
But is it possible to provide education to the poor and make money too?
6 - Seems to be possible...!
The two companies aim to profit succeeded two omega schools in Ghana and schools Bridge International in Kenya in changing the face of education in Africa through a form of primary education schools low-cost innovative and highly effective way to become a community-activity of successful companies and won many awards for social impact outstanding.
The series progresses Omega Schools, based in Ghana, a low-cost private education in primary education main stage for the children of poor families in exchange for low fees are incredibly affordable and less than 1 per day for each student.
And on the same model, Bridge International School was established in Kenya to provide education for children in East Africa for less than $ 5 per month for each student.
Before the start of this amazing business, and was thought to be impossible to teach the poor and get a profit, too, but the biggest proof of practical experience, where includes Omega Bridge and in the chapters about 200 thousand children in East and West Africa.
7 - (Helvetic) Contracting solar energy (Tanzania)
19-year-old received a youth loan from his mother to create its own project 10 years ago began to sell mobile phones made in China, but after it was discovered that only a small percentage of Tanzanians who buy them, since there is an abundance of electricity so he has an idea for a business that can that filled the gap.
In Tanzania, as is the case in many parts of Africa, solar energy is available, but it is not used to a large extent decided (Patrick Njawé) to start commercial activity would harnesses the sun's energy to generate electricity for millions of families, especially in rural areas.
Continued to travel to China, but instead of cell phones that the supply and installation of solar energy systems, and founded his company Contracting solar «Helvetic» bought and has installed more than 6,000 small unit of solar systems on the roofs in Tanzania and four other countries in East Africa - Kenya, Uganda Rwanda and Burundi.
Although renewable energy accounts for about 1% of the electricity sources in Tanzania, the Patrick already proud to have a high-level, such as the United Nations and the Government of Tanzania, World Vision and the army Tanzanian clients, even now, the company installed a number of solar water heating in systems governmental institutions and many of the United Nations projects, including schools, hospitals and hotels.
In 2013, revenues exceeded the more than $ 5 million, and the value of his company $ 15 million to become among the world's 10 young millionaires that monitor their experience by Forbes magazine for the rich in the world and among the top 100 medium enterprises in Africa in Tanzania in 2012.
In the end we want to say that Africa is the land treasure is extracted yet, we saw both indices great opportunities for success in Africa.
We gave our advice to investors needed to how to succeed in Africa through the accumulated expertise exceeded 10 years of work in Africa.