Part 1 - What a Difference a Year Makes

Youth unemployment is a significant problem in Kenya, where almost 60% of the population is under the age of 35. The country’s GDP per capita is US $375. Kenya’s economy is currently dependent on agriculture, but youth are moving to urban areas in large numbers. Therefore most new entrants to the labor force must choose between working in small-scale enterprises and being self-employed. These factors have led to high levels of youth unemployment. It is estimated that 64% of unemployed people in Kenya are youth.

An effective way of addressing the challenge of unemployed youth is to help them develop their skills in entrepreneurship and small business development. Business literacy helps young people to envision ways of getting out of poverty and doing something to help themselves and their communities, and eventually ensuring sustainable economic self-reliance. Furthermore, the language of business is universal and a tool for communicating and exchanging both products and ideas. It opens people to the world of markets, and promotes exchange and interaction.

Social Entrepreneurship 101: Africa

The Sauder School of Business, through a student initiative, designed the Social Entrepreneurship 101: Africa (SE 101: Africa) program to help Kenyan youth develop small businesses. Based on a program designed by Sauder faculty, and piloted with residents in the downtown eastside of Vancouver (the poorest neighborhood in Canada), SE 101: Africa was first delivered in August 2006 to Kenyan youth. The project helped Sauder faculty and students understand how to effectively exchange knowledge and ideas across cultural borders. Through extensive research and support from the Sauder community, the students involved in SE: 101 Africa designed the course to be practical, applicable, and sustainable in the local context.

How I Became Involved

It was in 2008, while I was in my MBA program at the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia (UBC), that I became involved in the Social Entrepreneurship 101 (SE 101): Africa program in Kenya. I wrote a series of blogs about my experiences teaching a three-week business planning class to a group of 35 aspiring youth entrepreneurs in Nairobi, Kenya. In re-reading the blogs, I more fully appreciate how far the program has come along. Indeed, what a difference a year makes.

What a Difference a Year Makes

Upon returning to Vancouver, Canada last year, Professor Nancy Langton and I met with the Dean to discuss the program achievements. While he was pleased with the progress, he wanted to see an expanded three to five year business plan for the program (now that the program had been running for three years) before giving the go-ahead for the 2009 program. We then spent the next few months developing the SE 101 business plan, and presented it to the Dean in December. He liked what he saw in the business plan and consequently allowed us to proceed with the 2009 program.

Professor Langton and I started recruiting the 2009 Sauder team in January and eventually selected a team of 5 undergraduate and 5 MBA students. Starting in February and continuing to July, the team developed and executed fundraising business plans, reviewed, refined, and taught the curriculum, and presented topics about Kenya. Fundraising is always a challenge, and more so this year given the economic downturn but with some creativity and perseverance, the team managed to meet its goal. In late July, we arrived in Nairobi en masse with a mixture of giddish anticipation, trepidation, and clarity of purpose. The first weekend was spent finalizing arrangements and meeting the Strathmore University students who were co-teaching the program at three locations: Kibera (the largest slum in East Africa), Friend’s Church (just outside Kibera), and International Christian Center (also in Nairobi).

Social Entrepreneurship 101: Africa, 2009 Program

I spent the first few days at different sites to help ensure the program got off to a good start, and while there were some issues with the resource materials and logistics, the UBC and Strathmore University student instructors ramped up remarkably well and quickly. I was impressed by their enthusiasm, breadth and depth of knowledge, and creativity in delivering the curriculum to over 80 student participants. Judging from the participant feedback we received at the end of the program, I was not alone in my assessment.

While the team was teaching the business-planning program, Professor Langton and I met with a number of micro-finance institutions and banks, during which we received a crash course about micro-finance. More about what we learned in my next blog.

SE101-2009: Kenya--Memories

A look back at some of the highlights of the trip to Kenya, with song and photos. Nyambura Gichuki is singing with some of her fellow students from the ICC site. Mike Rimoin, one of the UBC team members, accompanies on ukulele.