FT - A study in African ingenuity

Financial times wrote an article about management education in emerging markets, particularly the African market. The top business schools in the west have always flocked to India and china, today they are looking at Africa. Management education brings an established set of criteria that one can use to help run or sustain an enterprise. Africa's growth has been in the double digits due to commodities and globalization.

This growth has fueled the need for badly needed management education and world class business schools. Africans values education and some are starting to realize the need to learn the global business language is crucial for Africa to move forward. I see many of the western business schools to engage in joint-ventures with Africa universities for this type of education.

Euvin Naidoo article from Knowledge @ Wharton

Courtesy of White African

Interesting article from Knowledge @ Wharton about TED's own Euvin Naidoo a South African transplant living in New York City.


From Knowledge @ Wharton

Africa's stunning lack of basic services, such as electrical and telephone grids and Internet connectivity, might cause many to despair, but Euvin Naidoo -- a leading advocate for Western investment in the underdeveloped continent -- looks at the map and sees something different: hope.

Naidoo, president and CEO of the South African Chamber of Commerce in America, noted that with the world pushing for alternative sources of energy such as windmills or geothermal power, it will be easier to develop and implement these new technologies from scratch in Africa than to impose them on the entrenched power grid in the West. "The key about disruptive technology is that it really has a chance to innovate at the base of the pyramid," Naidoo said in his keynote address at the 15^th annual Wharton Africa Business Forum. "The base of the pyramid is the bottom -- the millions who are underserved."

The Wharton Africa Business Plan Competition

**Phase I submission due October 27**

Register and submit here

The 2007 Wharton Africa Business Plan Competition (WABPC) Finals will take place on Saturday November 10, 2007. The competition will be a key component of the 2007 Wharton Africa Business Forum and is organized to promote entrepreneurship in Africa. The intent of program is to link entrepreneurs with African business ideas to prospective investors such as banks, advice and investments toward the implementation of their business Idea.

The WABPC is organized in 3 phases. In Phase I, applicants submit an executive summary of their business plan

which will be reviewed for admission into Phase II by a group of professionals from the consulting or the investment world. In Phase II, the 6 admitted applicants from Phase I will pitch their business concept to a group of bankers, venture capitalists and private equity investors: The top 3 best ventures win predetermined prizes. In Phase III, follow up advice and funding is provided to co-opted ventures by investors and other professionals on their sole discretion. Finalists are eligible to win up to $3,000 in prizes.

Wharton African business conference

Wharton African MBA students are having their annual forum on Saturday Nov. 10th 2007. I have been to this annual event many times and will probably attend this year. I hope to see some of you there.

Save the date for the Wharton Africa Business Forum November 9 – 10 Jon M. Huntsman Hall, The Wharton School Register here today!

Featured panels include: Energy: Managing the scramble for Africa’s natural resources ● Technology: Competing globally in services by adapting proven technologies ● Entrepreneurship: Success stories in African entrepreneurship ● Venture Capital and Private Equity: Promoting the development of small and medium scale enterprises ● Culture and Arts Business: Realizing the export potential of sports, African art, films, music and fashions

The Wharton Africa Business Plan Competition The 2007 Wharton Africa Business Plan Competition (WABPC) will take place on Saturday November 10, 2007. The competition will be a key component of the 2007 Wharton Africa Business Forum and is organized to promote entrepreneurship in Africa. The WABPC will be conducted in 3 rounds. Finalists are eligible to win up to $3,000 in prizes. Saturday, October 27, 2007 Due date for Submission of an Executive Summary of the Business Plan along with a completed application form. Saturday, November 3,2007 Candidates elected for round 2 will be announced. Saturday, November 10, 2007 6 applicants selected from the Phase 1 pool pitch plans to Phase 3 jury and before conference participants. A full explanation of the competition is provided in the WABF web page: http://www.whartonglobal.com/Africa/businesspitch.html