The Monroe Street Journal

Issue date: 12/14/09 Section: Features

Did you know that Angola is now China's largest oil exporter, not Saudi Arabia or that a patch of dessert about the size of Maryland in Niger (a West African country) can supply enough solar energy to power all of the needs of Europe? Believe it or not but Africa touches your life everyday-from the coffee you drink to the gas in your car.

These were some of the salient points presented at the Business in Africa Panel Discussion held last Friday, December 4th at the Ross School of Business in room R0210. The first of its kind event was part of the BBSA's annual conference and was moderated by our very own "New Game" professor-Dr. Allan Afuah.

Dr. Afuah currently teaches the Strategy 675 class-New Game Business Models and is originally from Cameroun. The interactive event was attended by people from within and outside the Ross community. About 40 people were in attendance.

The three panelists Ugo Ikemba, Forrest Branch and Tal Dehtiar represented a diverse cross section of industries and experiences from the continent. Ugo Ikemba Nigerian Ross Alum, moved back to Nigeria to start a Private Equity Fund with his company-Vectis Capital. Forrest Branch. an American who has lived in Namibia for 22 years and has many years of consulting experience from the mining industry in Southern Africa. Tal Dehtiar is a Canadian entrepreneur who started a premium shoe company called Oliberté which manufactures in Ethiopia and ships to retail outlets in the United States in Europe. Check them out at www.oliberte.com.

This all made for scintillating dialogue around emerging opportunities in the various regions of the continent. The panelists emphasized the fact that doing business in Africa had to make business sense and investments made should present a distinct competitive advantage.

Questions from the audience focused on the growing interest of China in Africa, the lifestyle transition for people moving back and the role of African governments in creating an enabling environment for business to flourish.  Deregulation, shifts in government spending, outsourcing and favorable FDI policies were identified as factors that have opened up opportunities in ICT, Mining, Construction Materials, Property Services, Transportation and Food. Energy was also identified as a huge area of opportunity with the US having per capita electricity consumption of 13,581 KWh for 308 million people compared to Nigeria with a population of 154 million and average per capita electricity consumption of 116 KWh.

The Business in Africa Panel will be an Annual event for the BBSA and will serve as a platform to discuss opportunities for MAP projects, internships and entrepreneurial pursuits in Africa for Ross students. It also leverages the diversity of the BBSA membership in order to encourage African students to apply to Ross by creating programming that aligns with the interests of prospective African students.
Ross currently has first and second years with ties to Nigeria, Cameroun, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Ethiopia, Mali and Sierra Leone. The event was sponsored by the Target Foundation.

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