Youth put ICT business proposals forward

CAIRO:

By Haru Mutasa

Highway Africa News Agency

We all remember the childhood mantra, 'practice makes perfect no matter what you do, with practice you'll find that you can do it too'. There is no better way to become good at anything than doing this and getting good constructive feedback from experts who have lived to tell their success stories.

That’s exactly what participants at the Africa Telecom Youth Forum got when they presented their business proposals for ICT development to telecoms and business experts at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Cairo Egypt.

The would-be entrepreneurs had one mission to accomplish – outline what business project they would create to improve ICT development in their respective countries.

"My business proposal involves starting a website for African youth in their own native languages," said a confident young woman from Madagascar. "I want to know how I can go about raising the money needed to fund such a project."

She sits down quickly as her colleague hogs the microphone and presents his idea.
"I want to utilize the post office system we have in Malawi," he said. "I want to have internet facilities for people to come and use. How do I fund such a scheme?"

Responding, ICT and economics expert Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, said:"The key to creating a successful business project is to come up with an intelligent and original strategy."

He said: "Solutions lie in your own countries. You have to go out there and find them and not always think that asking for donor money is the only solution. Narrow your ideas to one simple thing. If they are too broad, no one will be willing to listen, let alone fund any of them."

In less than three hours, Spio-Garbrah taught the participants the fundamentals of a good business plan.

"Be original. Identify the problem. Find the people you need and come up with a solution to the problem," he said, "that's all you need.”

He added: “Remember, you must see ICTs as more than just mobile phones, computers or just broadcasting – they are enablers which allow people to do more and develop."

One by one several more young people presented their ideas hoping they were on the right track and that their proposals had some merit. Many ideas were politely shot down, but all accepted that this was a learning experience.

Perhaps it was the words of Lyndall Shope-Mafole, Chairperson of the South African Presidential National Commission on Information Society and Development, who inspired the participants to come up with their ideas.

She told the workshop: "You can do anything you set your minds to do. The road to success is long and hard but with hard work and determination you too can make it."
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