The phrase “let’s make a plan” for me represents the eternally positive spirit of the corner of Africa in which I live. In tricky sub-saharan terrains everything can, and does, break or go wrong. But rather than bitching and blaming someone else, someone will say – “we’ll make a plan” – and this engenders a warm fuzzy feeling that all will be ok. Somehow, with pieces of string and borrowed bits and bobs, a plan will indeed be made. There…

Duncan White explains the figures behind this flier in more detail in his recent blog. The flier was designed to communicate the key points of the MEGA scheme to attract donor support for this innovative social enterprise approach to managing a number of micro-hydro schemes at Mulanje mountain in Malawi. The plan is to provide grid access to over 35,000 individuals as well as…

When we held our NGO / private sector workshop back in November in Malawi, the unwritten assumption was that NGOs could play a valuable role in helping link the private sector to smallholder suppliers. NGOs have naturally been stepping into this gap since their social programmes mean they are already working closely with communities who need assistance with growing their livelihoods. This role…

Last Monday BIF Malawi invited participants from the NGO and private sector communities for a workshop in Lilongwe, many of whom have been involved in BIF activities to date and have a strong interest in inclusive business. The event was designed to debate partnering in the agribusiness sector but also to facilitate networking and illustrate some relevant and innovative projects.

I just…

Several years ago I was working for an NGO that invested a sum of money in buying some household solar products to sell on to rural consumers. The benefits were compelling: reduced environmental impact due to using clean energy instead of kerosene and candles, less smoke inhalation, bright light for mums to breastfeed their kids and, once the relatively small initial investment had been covered, free light for as long as the units lasted. Even better – the company who sold us the units told…

My colleague and I recently met with senior managers of a large, well-established local agro-processing company. These businessmen were hard-nosed and donor-weary; they had stories to tell of NGOs who promised smallholder produce and were never able to deliver. We were there to discuss an idea which promised to facilitate the growth of a new system which we thought was an exciting possibility for commercial and long term pro-poor impact in Malawi. There were challenges that smart consultants…

The Global SME Finance Initiative has just been announced on the DFID website, and of the 15 countries targetted, two are current BIF countries - Malawi and India. This is great news as access to finance has been a recurring theme among our clients in…

I took another site visit to MEGA this week, the Mulanje mountain micro-hydro scheme BIF is working with.  The project is shaping up for commissioning in a few weeks time. The most visible signs of progress were the transmission poles with shiny cables. The recent devaluation of the Malawi Kwacha means that prices have jumped for some of the components and the project has had a temporary cashflow issue. This is being resolved and the remaining transmission materials should be purchased and…

In contrast to my last blog post about the difficulties NGOs perceive in speaking the right language to communicate with the private sector, the reverse also proves to be a challenge! The business community often struggles to understand the donor lingo. Specifically, businessmen are used to being able to sell their concepts by phone calls, meetings and pressing the flesh: for them, being faced by a form with a series of development-ese questions to answer is like being back in the exam hall…

On Wednesday morning, BIF Malawi, in collaboration with Business Consult Africa (BCA) and CONGOMA (the Malawian Association of NGOs), held a joint workshop to discuss inclusive business and the opportunities and challenges for NGOs to work with the private sector. The event was well attended, with a total of 27 participants, mainly from Malawian and International NGOs, but also with representation from the donor community. The high attendance meant the room was a little cramped – but at…

Great news as we plan the implementation of two CSA projects in Malawi and Zambia in February:

http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/119835/icode/

On Tuesday night I discovered that when the fuel indicator light in my car goes red, I only have a few short journeys around town left in the tank. I discovered the hard way - by running out - and had to use the remains of my second to last jerry can to get me on the road again. I have one precious 20 litre can left ...then what? There have been virtually no fuel deliveries into Malawi since the new year and there is nothing to indicate that the problem, caused by the lack of FOREX needed to…

I thought it was time for a catch up with our first BIF Malawi cost sharing project: Afri-Nut. On Wednesday afternoon I popped in to visit Richard Kettlewell, the interim MD, on the premises the company is currentl y sharing with one of its investors, NASFAM.  The visit was timely as the plant had just started operating…

Applying hand-held technology on-site to map and assess thousands of smallholder farms in Malawi benefits farmers.  Assumption or logical verifiable assertion?  In Malawi last week we were discussing this, and the potential impacts of other inclusive business projects, and found that drawing up ‘results chains’ helped give the answer.

Results chains, also known as ‘chains of logic’ are simply a visual map of how new activities lead to ultimate impacts – for the business and…