Indego Africa at HBS Africa Business Conference

A little over a week ago, on Feb. 20th, I was honored to speak at the 12th Annual Harvard Business School Africa Business Conference. The panel, entitled "The Space Between: Public, Private, Non-profit Approaches to Private Sector Development in Africa," explored the opportunities and challenges faced as these three sectors look for innovative and effective ways to collaborate for Africa's benefit. The panel was moderated by Allen Grossman, Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School, and I was joined by Kristi Ragan, Chief of Party, Global Development Alliances, DAI, and Kathleen Danoher, Investment Advisory Board, Capitalworks Equity Partners, South Africa and Endeavor, South Africa. It was wonderful to meet everyone!

My remarks focused mainly on the partnerships between Indego Africa (a nonprofit organization) and handicraft cooperatives in Rwanda (private, for-profit entities). The key to success, I contend, is committing to an atmosphere of respect, trust, and communication. For instance, our strong partnerships with Cocoki and Covanya are build upon candid discussion, careful listening, and transparency. This applies to all elements of the partnership, including product pricing, wages, quality control, and even Indego Africa's training programs, which utilize lesson plans designed from the ground up to reflect the women’s continuous feedback on what is most useful to them.

Indeed, the fact that the coops are our partners, and not part of Indego Africa, is crucial. The development of the artisans is instead intricately linked to the growth of their own businesses. The cooperative must become an enterprise that the women trust to operate effectively and ethically. It must refine and execute a business model that the women find profitable, equitable, and relevant to improvements in their daily lives. Each woman thus plays an important role in her cooperative, which is run entirely by the artisans and in full adherence to principles of democracy and fairness.

I could go on, but for now I'll say it was a wonderful experience to participate. The level of enthusiasm and opportunity buzzing around the conference (with more than 900 students and professionals in attendance) was truly invigorating. Thank you again to HBS Africa Business Club for the invitation.

- Ben