Africa In Focus

Africa In Focus: "The mainstream thinking now is that Africa is different and we could get it right if we want. The choice is fully ours, and it is now time for us to define what we want."

African Development Bank (AFDB) President, Dr. Donald Kaberuka.

Monday 30 April 2012

LeapFrog Invests USD$5.5 million In Express Life Insurance

VENTURES AFRICA – LeapFrog Investments has acquired a major share of Express Life Insurance Company. This is the largest foreign investment in the history of Ghana’s Insurance Industry.
According to a statement issued by LeapFrog, Express Life Insurance Company stands to benefit from LeapFrog’s capital and distinctive operational expertise to become the market leader in serving the large untapped market of low-income consumers in Ghana with products often costing less than US$10 per month.

The investment will substantially increase financial inclusion in this pivotal African market and will mark a new phase of inclusive growth for the sector. LeapFrog is the world’s largest investor in inclusive insurance and related financial services with its $135m fund. The fund invests in companies serving the next billion, the vast untapped market of emerging consumers in Africa and Asia. It has made landmark investments in Africa and Asia, contributed to robust operational and financial performance of its portfolio companies, and currently reaches over 8.6 million people, 70% of whom are women and children.

Ghana’s insurance penetration is low compared to other African countries. More than 23 million of Ghana’s almost 25 million population is yet to be insured in any way, a report released earlier this month indicated. However, Ghana’s GDP grew at 13.5% last year and its life insurance industry has grown at 40% annually for the past five years.

Obed Kweku Danquah, Executive Chairman of Express Group of Companies, launched Express Life in 2009. He is a Ghanaian entrepreneur whose businesses focus on financial services for the mass market in Ghana. The company primarily offers hybrid savings and risk products to individuals employed by public sector institutions.

“Given LeapFrog’s profit-with-purpose approach to investing and experience in the insurance industry, they are an ideal partner. This powerful strategic alignment will permanently alter the insurance space in the country by setting a new standard for ethical and inclusive provision of insurance to the mass market” said Danquah.

As an investor, LeapFrog is investing USD$5.5 million as capital and expertise to Express, and providing operational support across the organization. Key operational initiatives include strengthening management, building and training a distinctive agency force, and designing relevant and affordable products.

Mr Doug Lacey, Head of LeapFrog’s operation in Africa, said the name Express Life Insurance would not change, because the Ghanaian company had brand equity in the market they believed must be maintained.

“LeapFrog is committed to driving the delivery of affordable insurance for low-income consumers across Africa, and Express will play a leading role in this regard for Ghana,” said Doug Lacey, the LeapFrog partner who led the transaction.

“Our portfolio now covers five African countries and includes landmark investments in companies such as Apollo, the leading insurance group in East Africa, and AllLife, the innovative South African insurer for people living with HIV/AIDS.”

LeapFrog’s Founder and President, Dr. Andrew Kuper said, “Investing in Ghana underscores LeapFrog’s commitment to high-growth emerging markets that are home to the next billion consumers.” He also revealed that through Express, LeapFrog will to empower over 500,000 Ghanaians with financial safety nets and springboards to a better life.

Nigeria Will Pocket USD$1.6billion Annually With The Use Of High Quality Cassava Flour

VENTURES AFRICA –  The use of High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) will save Nigeria N258 billion ( $1,638,408,135USD) yearly. This was disclosed by the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesinain, during a visit to the UTC corporate office of the company in Lagos recently.
While applauding the company for actualizing the dream of producing a wheat-made product with cassava, which many critics had deemed impossible, Dr. Adesina said with the inclusion of High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) in some of its products that the country will be saving about N258b every year. He commended the management of UTC for its efforts at including 40% cassava flour in production of some of its products.

The Minister revealed that Nigeria remains the largest producer of cassava with a total of 36.8millionMT harvested from 3.13 million/ha in 2009 and an average yield of 11.7mt/ha. In spite of this, the company account to a low fraction of global value addition due to the heavy dependence on imported wheat flour by bakers.

He commended the management of UTC for its efforts at including 40% cassava flour in production of some of its products.
Adesina said, “Those who ship in cheap wheat bread said we cannot do it. What UTC has done is the power of what you can do for your country.”

The initiation of using cassava in replacement of wheat will turn the cassava sector in Nigeria into a major player in local and international High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) by adopting improved production and processing technologies as well as organising producers and processors into efficient value-added chains.

To keep the ball rolling, Adesina said that 18 large industrial scale High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) plants will be established soon to generate the 1.2 million tons of HQCF required under the Federal government policy of 40% inclusion rate of HQCF in wheat flour. The introduction of this large industry scale firm will diminish the challenge of the availability of HQCF.

According to the Managing Director of UTC, Mrs. Folusho Olaniyan, UTC is positioned to be part of this initiative based on the company’s first demonstration -test run of cassava-based bread, which dates back to 2007, saying that the company has actually gone ahead to match the quality of the bread produced from the High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) with that of 100% wheat flour.

South Africa And Saudi Arabia Launch SASAH To Strengthen Economic Ties

 


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VENTURES AFRICA – South Africa and Saudi Arabia have strengthened their political and economic ties by creating a new company- Saudi Arabia-South Africa Holdings (SASAH). The company was launched during the fourth Saudi Arabian African Joint Committee held in Riyadh.

Present at the event were South Africa’s Trade and Industry Minister, Rob Davies; Saudi Arabia’s Commerce and Industry Minister, Tawfiq Al-Rabiah; the South African Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ebrahim Ebrahim and South African Ambassador in Riyadh, Sadick Jaafer. Also present at the ceremony were seventeen African companies, which formed the visiting delegation from South Africa.

The new company is entitled to free 5 percent equity in any joint venture initiated by SASAH. The partnership will help the two countries to invest in profitable business ventures and facilitate joint ventures.

The company will be a legally registered entity in their respective countries and fulfil the legal requirements of investment authorities and tax regimes of both countries. It may become a major shareholder in some strategic joint ventures, Saudi news agency said.

Al-Rabiah said, “The meeting of the joint committee is part of the constructive dialogue that binds the Arab Kingdom and South Africa to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation and push the level of current trade, which reached SR19.7 billion last year. Saudi’s exports to South Africa have also reached SR18.2 billion, while imports from South Africa to the Kingdom had reached SR1.5 billion.”

He stated that there is need for the improvement of bilateral agreement between the two countries. He said the political relations between the two friendly countries would contribute to strengthening bilateral cooperation in economy, trade and investment.
The creation of SASAH is expected to create mutual business opportunities in mining, petrochemical and agriculture. The partnership between the two countries will also contribute to increasing the volume and quality of the existing trade and discuss new prospects for expanding and strengthening it in several areas.

Describing the initial activities of the new company, Adnaan Grimsel, consultant to the Saudi-South African Business Council said the initial capital of SR10 million would be utilized to conduct the bankable feasibility studies for the initially identified sectors such as agriculture, mining and petrochemical downstream industries.

“SASAH aims to be a leading blue chip profitable investment company in the region capitalizing on the strength of Saudi Arabian and South African economies,” Grimsel said, adding that the two countries are keen on developing a strategic relationship to enhance the business opportunities, which has resulted in the formation of this new venture.
Dr. Robert Davis said South Africa depends on Saudi Arabia to meet 30% of its needs for oil and oil derivatives, calling at the same time for searching for the best ways to enter into new partnerships that contribute to strengthening the existing cooperation between the two countries.
Over two days in Riyadh, the joint committee will examine several topics on stimulating the quantity and quality of trade between the two countries; increasing trade delegations and participation in joint exhibitions; the need for goods coming from South Africa to meet Saudi Arabia’s standards; speeding up the procedures for activating the defence cooperation between the two countries; boosting military and security cooperation; calling on South African companies to attain exploration licenses for precious metals and associated minerals in the Kingdom and inviting South African specialized companies in the areas of mining to invest in the Saudi mining sector in addition to exchanging information and expertise between the two countries and cooperation in the field of aqua-culture, requesting an appointment to sign the agreement on maritime transport between the two countries and cooperation in the fields of ports, railways, higher education, health training, culture, media and other fields, the agency reported.

Thursday 26 April 2012

East Africa Gas Forum To Address Issues Affecting Liquid Natural Gas Exploration







VENTURES AFRICA- Following the latest quest by investors from different countries to explore East Africa as the new investment hub, particularly as a result of the abundance of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) in the region, a forum has been scheduled to address the issue.
The forum, East Africa Gas Forum, is schedule hold in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on the 5th, 6th and 7th of September 2012. Supported by the Tanzanian Ministry of Energy and Minerals, the forum will focus on the strategic, commercial, and geopolitical issues underlying the development of major recently discovered gas resources within the region. It will also discuss the impact they will have on the domestic market, and the strong potential for LNG export.

According to a statement issued by Gastech Specialist events, “recent discoveries and the potential for gas monetisation, as well as the high probability of investment in infrastructure to support LNG exports, have meant that East Africa is a game changer for the global gas market.”

Africa presents vast opportunities for economic and social development investors. The forum will analyse topics on commercial potential for East African gas on the global market; understanding the commitments of regional governments; the considerations of doing business within East Africa, taxation, and overcoming challenges of market entry; the cost of securing assets offshore, political risk and potential ROI, the region’s energy requirements – how gas will be used domestically.

In addition, updates on regional gas-fired power projects and the impact of predicted economic growth as well as Gas infrastructure (getting gas resources to the buyers – pipelines, LNG terminals and general infrastructure) will be discussed at the forum. All topics will be focused on key East African countries like Tanzania, Mozambique, Uganda, Rwanda, and Kenya.

Speakers at the forum include Nelson Ocuane, Chairman, ENH; Alfred D. Byigero, Director-Energy Regulation, Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency; Chris Ford, Managing Director, SONGAS; Eugene Okpere, General Manager Global Exploration, SASOL and Ali Abdullahi, Special Advisor, Prime Minister and Cabinet on Energy, Infrastructure, Water, Somalia Transitional Federal Government.

To learn more about the programme, check, http://www.eastafricagasforum.com.

Giving Budding African Entrepreneurs A Leg Up In Business

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VENTURES AFRICA – Africa is seen as the next economic hub of the world. To maximize this opportunity, there is need for individuals to be economically self-reliant. To achieve this, one way that has been devised overtime is to proliferate entrepreneurship, which will produce more jobs. This will in turn give them economic freedom and improve the continent’s economic footing.

Many people believe that entrepreneurs are absolutely essential to the growth of Africa, perhaps this is what informed the establishment of Branson Center for Entrepreneurship that currently offer growth opportunities to budding African entrepreneurs.

International business mogul, Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Empire fame, established the center in Johannesburg South Africa in 2005. The goal was to identify and support promising young entrepreneurs and equip them with the skill and seed funding to launch successful businesses of their own. It was born out of the passion to groom up-and-coming entrepreneurs like he was helped when he was starting up. Another of such school- Branson Academic Center was established last year in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

The business school was set up as a partnership between Virgin Unite, the non-profit organization of Richard Branson’s Group, in partnership with Virgin Holidays and Entrepreneur Teddy Bletcher, the founder of CIDA City Campus’ a university in Johannesburg.

CIDA City campus is South Africa’s first virtually free tertiary institution providing accredited business administration degrees to disadvantaged students. The business academy is a non-profit organization that provides the platform to entrepreneur to bring their entrepreneurship skill and dream to fulfillment.

Branson’s academy that began full operation in 2006 serves as a launch pad for entrepreneurs while supporting rising entrepreneurs in creating jobs and growing local economies by helping them actualize their business ideas. Since inception, the school has been able to help growing South African Entrepreneurs to improve on their business skills thereby giving them a right footing on how to successfully establish and maintain their businesses. It has been able to fulfill its obligation in helping to improve economic growth in South Africa by supporting start-ups and micro-enterprises with skills, mentors, services, networks and finance agreements.

There are many talented entrepreneurs in Africa who are in search of similar opportunities provided by the centre. Sir Branson attests to this fact when he said, “I have met many creative entrepreneurs in South Africa and I have learnt that what they need to launch and grow their businesses are practical business skills.”


Branson Academic Center delivers a world-class curriculum in business and entrepreneurial concepts that relates to running a practical business enterprise and business challenges faced in real life situations. Students offer course like Mathematics and English as elective courses while majoring on business administrative courses that will help launch their business career. They get a tiny bit of seed funding in the first year, a little more in the second year, more in the third year and the person with the best idea will get even more at the end. This money will be in form of loan, which the students will have to pay back into the business seed money kitty for those following them.

The business school offer budding entrepreneurs the opportunity to meet business gurus in their field. Apart from this, the institution provide young entrepreneurs with social skills as well as people-management skills. They learn the power of delegation and sometimes discover new things about themselves that help them know and manipulate their strengths and weaknesses for the benefit of their businesses.
Branson Academic Center has over the years been able to break the popular principle that setting up a business after school is for those who do not have a choice. The academy has bridged the gap of lack of role models, no access to capital or training that has overtime been an obstacle to willing entrepreneurs.

“For a lot of entrepreneurs, 80 percent of what they learn they are going to learn by just being out in the jungle , trying things occasionally and falling flat on their faces, picking themselves up and trying again. So we can help them with the other 20%, that quite important icing on the cake,” Sir Branson once said while talking about the business school.

One of such entrepreneurs that have been launched into the business world is Lasego Malatsi, co- founder of Mzanzi designers Emporium.  She was one of the African designers to grace the London Fashion Week. Narrating her experience as a product of the Academy, she said, “Like many South Africans, when I finished my studies, I couldn’t find a job so I started my own business instead. However, finding support to help me launch my fashion label wasn’t easy so I approached the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship and received many networking opportunities to promote m business.”

This approach by the school has also been able to boost the image of entrepreneurship as not just a moneymaking venture but as a venture that can be used to tackle social problems. To keeping the school going, a Fund raising event is organised yearly where places to join Sir Richard Branson in mentoring and coaching students are auctioned to attendees.

When establishing the business school in South Africa, Branson said “ I believe that increasing entrepreneurship in this country is the golden highway to economic freedom- plus it’s an exciting and fun way to make a living”— and indeed it has. Isn’t South Africa a leading economy in Africa and a force to reckon with globally?

From BRICS TO BRINCS: Lagos Holds The Key

VENTURES AFRICA – Participants at the just concluded 6th Lagos Economic Summit also known as “Ehingbeti 2012” have affirmed that Nigeria can be among the top economies in the world if the proper infrastructures are put in place.
The Economic summit, which had in attendance leading speakers from the US, United Kingdom and Nigeria, lasted for three days (22-25 April). It was tagged “From BRICS TO BRINCS: Lagos Holds The Key.”

The main thrust of the summit was to focus on how Lagos, the commercial nerve of Nigeria, can become a first-choice destination for foreign investors giving its viable potentials. Major areas that were examined are Power, Agriculture, Transportation and Housing (PATH).
The Chairman of the organising committee of this year’s summit, Ben Akabueze, explained, “Each of these sectors serves as an enabler for all other sectors of the Nigerian economy because anything that touches on power, food security, transportation and housing definitely affects the generality of the people.”
Participants at the summit included local and foreign investors, captains of industries, private-public sector operators and policy makers. It highlighted opportunities in power, housing, transportation, agro-allied and tourism sectors that investors could tap into.

 Razia Khan, the key speaker, and the Vice-President Africa region, Standard Chartered bank, said that Nigeria might emerge as Africa’s largest economy in the next few years if it maintains its current growth rate.

Another speaker at the summit, Wonuola Adetayo, the Chief Executive Officer of SoftSkills Management Consultant Firm, said, “For Nigeria to be among emerging economies, Lagos state has the key; there is the need to upgrade its infrastructure to world-class level, invest in urban renewal, mass housings, power generation, agro-allied and an effective intra-modal transportation system that will tap potentials in rail, water and roads.”

Wonuola said the significance of the commercial city lies in the fact that it contributes 25% of the National Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with 65% of the commercial activities coming from the city — the headquarters of many of the banking and financial institutions.

It is believed that Lagos needs about 12,000 mega watts of electricity to meet its industrial and domestic needs and about one million houses for the ever-increasing population.

Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, said even though Lagos has the key to make Nigeria a “BRINCS” member, it couldn’t do so alone without the contributions of other parts of the country. “It will be no good being a BRINCS member if we still battle polio and struggle to provide water. We must work hard at achieving it,” he said.

According to President Goodluck Jonathan who was represented by Mr Olusegun Aganga, Minister of Trade and Investment, the Federal government is ready to partner with the Lagos state government to improve power generation. “We know that the issue of power cannot be solved by the federal government alone. And there are many investment opportunities that abound in the power sector. For this reason, we have privatised the power sector. And we further focus on creating an enabling environment for investors to survive in the country.

“Our administration will work with the state government to deliver power to the citizens of Nigeria. My administration will work closely with the state government and the private sector to deliver power supply to Nigerians. In this regard, the federal government is ready to partner with the state governments particularly Lagos State government to improve power generation and distribution through the Public Private Partnership (PPP),” he said.
“Lagos is home to about 2,000 industrial complexes, 10,000 commercial ventures and 22 industrial estates. It contributes 30% to the nation’s GDP (2006 statistics) and is the leading contributor to the non-oil sector GDP (2011 statistics). Lagos accounts for over 60% of Nigeria’s industrial and commercial activities; 70% of national maritime cargo freight, over 80% of international aviation traffic and over 50% of Nigeria’s energy consumption”.

With a population of close to 20 million and proximity to many West African countries, Lagos markets look most attractive as participants believe that ‘if the country could overcome its infrastructure and security challenges, it could become part of the emerging economies like Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS).

The acronym BRICS was coined by Golden Sachs, a leading financial rating firm, to highlight the potentials of these countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) based on their economic growths, population, level of infrastructural development, and prospects of becoming an industrialised economies in the nearest feature.
“Lagos holds the key in attaining this goal because of the level of economic activities it is generating. It contributes 80% of the International passenger flows in the country. In addition, the two sea ports generate about 70% of the cargo freights,” a participant, Wale Shonibare, said.

The participants also stressed the need to institutionalise good governance, transparency, accountability, rule of law, policy consistency, security and improved regular power system, to attract needed investments.

In his address the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, said the resolve of the state government to continue to hold the biennial economic summit demonstrates their commitment to the cause of Lagos economic growth and sustainable development. According to him, “We have been driven by our imagination, and the desire to transform Lagos into what we firmly believe is infinitely possible – Africa’s model mega city.

“It is no longer debatable that the growth poles for the world are to be found mainly in the emerging markets of Asia and Africa and Nigeria is an important part of this projection.

“Our focus on power, agriculture and agro-allied, transportation, and housing and urban renewal is relevant now because we believe it is the path that will lead us to BRINCS,” he said, adding that his administration was working on providing 2,000 new homes for residents across the state.

China, Western Countries And Others Eye Zimbabwe As Africa’s Next Big Economy

 
 
 
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VENTURES AFRICA – Foreign investors are now eyeing investment opportunities in Zimbabwe after a decade of economic neglect. This is evident given how many countries trooped in en masse for the 53rd annual Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF).

According to the General Manager of ZITF, there was a huge waiting list of companies that had wanted to exhibit at the event. “After the first of April, we started turning away people who had not committed themselves fully on whether they would exhibit and gave the space to others,” he asserted.

With China as the leading exhibitors with 35 companies and about 170 Chinese participants, China is taking the exhibition seriously as it has organised an investment seminar with local people to identify viable investment opportunities.

China is one of Zimbabwe’s major sources of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). “China is one of the BRICS nations which Zimbabwe is targeting to boost its economic growth through increased flow of FDIs, which will enable Medium Term Plan (MTP) to be implemented,” Economic Planning and Investment Promotional Secretary, Desire Sibanda said.

South Africa was the second largest foreign investor at the fair. The country representative said it is prepared to use the fair to market its product and service in areas like retail, hotel, mining as well as food and beverages.
South Africa’s Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Prof. Vusi Mavimbela said Zimbabwe is a good investment destination. He urged the country to take advantage of its skilled labour to boost its economy.

“Zimbabwe is so advanced in terms of education, if not the leader. There is a need to integrate these skills towards economic growth of the country and the region,” Mavimbela said.
This year’s annual exhibition with the theme ”Investing locally, Reaping globally” features thirty African countries and about thirteen countries from other continents like Germany, China, Poland, Italy, Brazil and Pakistan.

Zimbabwe is presently recovering from a decade economic meltdown after western countries sanctioned it in 2001 for implementing agrarian reform. At this period when the western countries shunned the country, Zimbabwe introduced the Look East Policy, which has since been favourable.

However this year, western investors are trooping in to maximize economic opportunities, it had earlier ignored.

According to Italian Assistant Cultural Attache, Robyn Koen, it has been 8 years since Italy last exhibited. “We want to promote investment into the country and with the help of stabilisation of the economy, there are now lots of investment opportunities.” He said.

Indonesian Deputy Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Kusnarebi Takaijanto, also said, “We are here because Zimbabwe is growing. Its economy is one of the fastest growing in the region and we believe Zimbabwe will be a good country to do business in.”

MTN Offers Grant To Boost Entrepreneurship Skill In Nigeria




VENTURES AFRICA - To further encourage the growing spirit of entrepreneurship among Nigerians, MTN Nigeria is offering a N30 million Naira (USD$190,000) grant to entrepreneurs with the brightest business idea at this year’s MTN Leadership Seminar. Themed “Breaking the Success Myth,” the 2012 MTN Leadership Seminar is taking place from 24-27 April 2012 in Port Harcourt and Lagos.

The seminar, which was formerly tagged “MTN motivational Series” but now rebranded to “MTN Leadership Series” is open to MTN subscribers under the age of 40.

According to Mrs Funmi Omogbenigun, MTN General Manager on Corporate Communications, the seminar was repackaged to bring more value to MTN customers and the general public. She said the seminar is part of MTN’s commitment to empower and enrich the lives of its customers, especially the youths.

MTN, Nigeria’s biggest Telecom network, has in the past four years successfully brought in renowned speakers like Chris Gardner, David Plouffe and Les Brown to speak to budding entrepreneurs in Nigeria on how to be successful in their business venture.

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To mentor participants at this year’s leadership forum is American entrepreneur and success teacher , Dr. Farray Gray. He is expected to deliver a paper on motivation, entrepreneurship, leadership, integrity and strategy at the seminars.

According to the General Manager, Consumer Marketing of MTN Nigeria, Kola Oyeyemi , Gray  will mentor winners of the MTN business Plan competition that would be given N30million grant for having a fantastic business idea. MTN is offering this assistance to growing entrepreneurs to “see the dream of still budding business come into full bloom.” The overall winner will get N20 million and will be mentored by  Dr. Farrah Gray for 6 months, while the first and second runner up will get N5million each to enhance their businesses.

Dr. Gray was chosen to mentor the program as a result of his rich entrepreneur and successful story. He is a successful American philanthropist, author, syndicated columnist and motivational speaker. At only 27, Dr Fray has achieved success that will be rivaled by his peers. He is a living example of success of harnessing youth potential.

According to the influential People Magazine, Gray is the only African American to rise to the position of a business mogul without being in entertainment or having family connections. He is the CEO of Farrah Gray Publishing and the youngest person to open an office on the iconic Wall Street, New York. He became a Self-made millionaire at the age of 14.