Keep an eye on Africa!

Swedish IT companies have a great opportunity to find a completely new market in the Sub-Saharan African countries. So say Erik Winther and Wilhelm Henriksson, who went to Africa to do their degree projects in industrial engineering and management.

“Swedish companies aren’t really following what is happening in Africa, and it is impossible to get a good idea of what is going on without being there,” says Winther who, along with Henriksson – both students on the Master of Science programme in industrial engineering and management – spent seven weeks in Africa, during the autumn and winter.

They visited Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda and interviewed industrialists, politicians, people from universities and government authorities.

“We were welcomed with open arms. They are very keen to learn lessons from Europe and to use these to create their own solutions to help with the development of their society,” Henriksson says.

Wilhelm Henriksson and Erik Winther flank Simon, Masai warrior and bishop in Suswa, Kenya (pictured to the right).

The conclusion Winther and Henriksson draw is crystal clear: there are huge opportunities for Swedish companies in information and communications technology (ICT) to work in Sub-Saharan Africa. The need for much of what we have, which works here, is great but naturally some adaptation is required. The challenge is also to find effective business models.

“Interest in ICT is great and is given high priority in the countries we visited, particularly Rwanda. One of the problems is the shortage of capital, something that needs innovative thinking but which has also brought about a lot of new business models,” Winther explains.

Taxi drivers lease their cars and pay a smaller amount each week or perhaps even on a daily basis, washing powder is bought in small packets each time you wash laundry and so on, and many payments are made via mobile telephone. The M-Pesa mobile payment solution from telecommunications operator Safaricom has been hugely successful since its launch in 2007.

“We heard it said a number of times that mobile telephones have been more important for development in Africa than all the foreign aid put together,” Henriksson explains.

Many of the countries are in the process of digitalising their national records. So technology that connects the different records and registers is of great interest, as are services that visualise the information, ideally on mobile phones.

They also found several creative environments, examples being Konza Technology City in Kenya where the equivalent of SEK 90 billion [ca EURO 10 billion] has been invested in a business cluster, similar to the one in Mjärdevi. Sten Gunnar Johansson, CEO of Mjärdevi Science Park, also acted as a sounding board when it was being built. Another example is in Rwanda, where Pennsylvania’s Carnegie Mellon University has a campus with an active incubator for new companies. A third is the entrepreneurial cluster in the city of Nairobi.

“They are not scared of sharing their ideas, either, and we are bound to see an African Bill Gates before long,” Winther says.

A friendly message they were both asked to pass on to us up here in the North: We need businesses, not aid!

The decision that their degree project would involve Africa was the result of long process. Both of them wanted to travel, preferably in developing countries. A presentation by Björn Blomberg, a former CEO of Swedfund and LiU alumnus set them on track.

“He gave an incredibly exciting presentation and we contacted him immediately,” Winther explains.

After a year and a half of discussion the task was ready: investigate the opportunities for Swedish information and communications technology in Sub-Saharan Africa. After some careful deliberation it was decided that they would visit Ghana, Rwanda and Kenya, which are geographically spread out and have somewhat different conditions. From August 2012 to January of this year, they spent seven weeks on the African continent.

Both are really keen to go back, but first they have to finish their degrees. Winther has already begun to work as a trainee at Saab, with the promise of at least one year working abroad, and Henriksson is looking for a job, but may also consider opening his own company - although in what field is still a secret.  

“With the degree project we wanted to create awareness among Swedish companies and entrepreneurs about opportunities in Africa. We also have a great deal to learn from them, as they have another way of looking at technological solutions and business models. It would be so great if Linköping University developed its collaboration with universities in Kenya, for example. East Sweden and East Africa, that would be great,” says Henriksson.

Their suggestions: Go there and see for yourself. Personal contacts are priceless. Watch out for corruption and try never to take short cuts, it does not pay in the long run.

 

Related links

Degree project Dare Africa – Seizing the ICT Opportunities in Sub-Saharan Africa, Erik Winther and Wilhelm Henriksson.

 

Monica Westman Svenselius Wed May 08 13:36:46 CEST 2013

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Keep an eye on Africa!

Swedish IT companies have a great opportunity to find a completely new market in the Sub-Saharan African countries. So say Erik Winther and Wilhelm Henriksson, who went to Africa to do their degree projects.

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