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...incubation space
“What elders may see while sitting, the young may not see while standing" |
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February 7 (report)
Small and Medium Enterprises
Assegid T. Gedamu
Regional Programme Coordinator for East Africa
Red een Kind, Addis Ababa
Small and Medium Enterprises
Assegid T. Gedamu
Regional Programme Coordinator for East Africa
Red een Kind, Addis Ababa
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Some 60 people gathered at VHL to attend the first U®conversation organized jointly by URAIDE and VHL University of Applied Sciences. Participants form both the Professional Masters program Management of Development and the Bachelors program International Development Management and a few interested visitors sat together and had conversations about the features of Small and Medium Enterprises in Africa, the business environment and institutional frameworks being supportive towards SME development.
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Informal economy
The topic was introduced by Mr. Assegid Gedamu, the Regional Program Coordinator for East Africa for Red een Kind. Mr. Assegid ably introduced the dilemmas of rural Africa and the trouble in connecting to the formal economy (see the download). He pointed to the important role of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to effectively connect to the rural informal economy and illustrated this with examples from Uganda, Mozambique, Zambia, Rwanda and Ethiopia.
Youth, Entrepreneurship and Agriculture
All-in-all the introduction was positively evaluating the opportunities for private sector development, though challenges were also mentioned. Mr. Assegid pointed to the Agricultural sector as the primary driver of fair and sustainable growth. The example of Ehtiopia, who chose the path of Agricultural Development Lead Industrialisation, is a case in point. Rather than focussing on mining, which has its challenges when it comes to redistribution of income and its connectedness to conflict, improvements in agriculture has the potential to benefit the 85% poor living in rural Ethiopia. The disregard for agriculture as an advantageous enterprise with especially the youth was considered to be a major challenge.
World Café
The second part of the session was filled with a world café, turning the introduction into a real conversation where everyone shared thoughts about Small and Medium Enterprise development in Africa. Four questions were addressed in the 8 café's where people contributed in three rounds.
What marked the deliberations was an energetic audience turning into a great source of energy and inspiration, bringing their realities to the table and discussing solutions and pointing to opportunities.
The sheets, reflecting the discussions within the different café's are displayed below.
The topic was introduced by Mr. Assegid Gedamu, the Regional Program Coordinator for East Africa for Red een Kind. Mr. Assegid ably introduced the dilemmas of rural Africa and the trouble in connecting to the formal economy (see the download). He pointed to the important role of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to effectively connect to the rural informal economy and illustrated this with examples from Uganda, Mozambique, Zambia, Rwanda and Ethiopia.
Youth, Entrepreneurship and Agriculture
All-in-all the introduction was positively evaluating the opportunities for private sector development, though challenges were also mentioned. Mr. Assegid pointed to the Agricultural sector as the primary driver of fair and sustainable growth. The example of Ehtiopia, who chose the path of Agricultural Development Lead Industrialisation, is a case in point. Rather than focussing on mining, which has its challenges when it comes to redistribution of income and its connectedness to conflict, improvements in agriculture has the potential to benefit the 85% poor living in rural Ethiopia. The disregard for agriculture as an advantageous enterprise with especially the youth was considered to be a major challenge.
World Café
The second part of the session was filled with a world café, turning the introduction into a real conversation where everyone shared thoughts about Small and Medium Enterprise development in Africa. Four questions were addressed in the 8 café's where people contributed in three rounds.
- Do you think the North should help South in transforming agriculture (agri-business)? Why? How?
- How can we make farming an interesting venture for the youth: “farming as a business”?
- How can the private sector be encouraged to do business (in a fairer way) with the poor?
- Who cares about SMEs?
What marked the deliberations was an energetic audience turning into a great source of energy and inspiration, bringing their realities to the table and discussing solutions and pointing to opportunities.
The sheets, reflecting the discussions within the different café's are displayed below.