CTA Handbook An ICT Agripreneurship Guide A Path to Success for Young ACP Entrepreneurs CTA Handbook An ICT Agripreneurship Guide A Path to Success for Young ACP Entrepreneurs About CTA The Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) is a joint international institution of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States and the European Union (EU). Its mission is to advance food and nutritional security, increase prosperity and encourage sound natural resource management in ACP countries. It provides access to information and knowledge, facilitates policy dialogue and strengthens the capacity of agricultural and rural development institutions and communities. CTA operates under the framework of the Cotonou Agreement and is funded by the EU. For more information on CTA, visit www.cta.int Disclaimer The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of CTA concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by CTA in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of CTA. This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of CTA and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. This license applies only to the text portion of this publication. ISBN 978-92-9081-613-3 Contents List of Case studies, Tables, Figures v Developing the business plan 15 and Boxes The traditional approach 16 Acronyms vi Lean Startup approach 18 Acknowledgements vii The BMC tool 19 Foreword ix An alternative to the BMC: 21 The Lean Canvas Introduction 1 Big opportunities 1 Formalising, sustaining and scaling 23 Why this guide? 2 your business Who should use this guide? 2 Registering your business 24 Step 1: Business name check and 25 registration Idea generation, key skills and 3 overcoming early challenges Step 2: Protect products, ideas and branding 25 Finances and your start-up 29 Developing and testing the 5 business idea: Understanding Bootstrapping 29 agricultural value chains Managing cash flow and sharing costs 29 Using a three-step method: What’s in 7 Balancing the search for grants versus 29 demand, what’s possible, SWOT analysis product development Understanding the big picture 8 Generating revenue streams and 29 sustainability Considering the middle view 8 Raising capital 30 Self-assessing the start-up 9 Reviewing and improving the 12 team’s capacity Scaling up 33 Overcoming early challenges 12 Lack of available partnerships between 12 start-ups and existing financial and/or governmental institutions Capacity building and role of incubators/ 12 accelerators Poor relationships with mobile network 13 operators Staff turnover 13 iv Contents Common mistakes, solutions 37 Conclusion 43 and advice Common mistakes and their 38 References and Appendices 47 solutions References 48 Single founder 38 Additional web resources 49 Solution-in-search-of-a-problem 39 Appendix 1 50 Not listening to the customer 39 List of organisations interviewed Choosing the wrong platform 39 Appendix 2 52 Inappropriate location 39 Web presence for organisations Bad choices of team members 40 interviewed for guide Too much focus on raising money 40 Appendix 3 53 The Business Model Canvas vs the Lean Poor understanding of finance and 40 Canvas accounting (and related matters) Appendix 4 54 Poor understanding of the legal and 40 A list of some ICT hubs in ACP countries regulatory environment Appendix 5 56 Advice from interviewed 41 Supporting ICT innovations and entrepreneurs entrepreneurship by youth in agriculture Contents v Case studies, Tables, Figures and Boxes Case Studies Tables Case study 1 – Hello Tractor: Integrating 6 Table 1. Options for mobile-based services 9 agriculture and technology Table 2. Typical elements of a traditional 17 Case study 2 – Modisar: Livestock 6 business plan management made simpler Table 3. Examples of headings found in a 18 Case study 3 – AgroCentral: Connecting 6 traditional business plan small farmers and buyers Table 4. Components of the BMC 19 Case study 4 – M-Farm: Serving farmers 6 in Kenya Figures Case study 5 – Mlouma and Mkulima 8 Young: Understanding the problem Figure 1. Agricultural value-chain segments 5 and stakeholders Case study 6 – Musoni: Cloud-based 9 microfinance Figure 2. BMS (Big picture items, Middle 7 view considerations and Self-assessment of Case study 7 – Mkulima Young and 10 the start-up) analysis Ensibuuko: Identifying gaps in the market Figure 3. The Lean Canvas model 21 Case study 8 – Ensibuuko and Farmerline's 11 winning strategy: Variety of skill sets Case study 9 – Agripro: Connecting young 14 Boxes farmers Box 1. Country profiles 8 Case study 10 – SlashRoots and 22 Box 2. Some popular ICT4Ag innovations 11 M-Shamba: Building business models in Africa Case study 11 – Hello Tractor: Protecting 26 Box 3. Partnership: Key for Esoko and Daral 12 IP with patents Technologies Case study 12 – Farmable.me: A copyright 27 Box 4. Incubators and co-working spaces 13 approach Box 5. Developing the initial business plan: 18 Case study 13 – Edyn: Crowdfunded 30 AgroCentral innovation Box 6. Creative Commons use by Farm 25 Case study 14 – Esoko and Moringa 31 Radio Connect: Grant funding Box 7. Logos 28 Box 8. Sustainable and scalable business 35 models vi Acronyms ACP African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States ARDYIS Agriculture Rural Development and Youth in the Information Society BMC Business model canvas BMS Big picture items, Middle view considerations and Self-assessment of the firm CTA Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation DAIN Diaspora Angel Investment Network DRC Democratic Republic of Congo EU European Union FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ICT Information and communication technology ICT4Ag Information and communication technology for agriculture IP Intellectual property IVR Interactive voice response MFI Microfinance institution MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology MNO Mobile network operator MVP Minimum viable product NGO Non-governmental organisation RFP Request for proposal SACCO Savings and credit cooperative SWOT Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats USAID United States Agency for International Development WIPO World Intellectual Property Organization vii Acknowledgements Most of the content of this guide was prepared by a The document benefited from reviews and team of consultants from ConnectiMass. Other comments by: John Kieti, information and inputs were prepared by CTA’s Agriculture Rural communication technology for agriculture Development and Youth in the Information Society (ICT4Ag) researcher (University of Nairobi) and (ARDYIS) project team. former director of m:lab East Africa; Dr Margaret ConnectiMass is a non-profit that inspires, connects Bernard, senior lecturer in computer science, and trains young people and women, to become The University of the West Indies; and Michael tech entrepreneurs through events and media Elliott, programme director, TechnoServe, Kenya. content in the Caribbean. The organisation works This project was conducted under the guidance to empower the next generation of technology and of Ken Lohento, CTA programme coordinator business leaders to leverage technology, (ICT4Ag), with inputs from Benjamin K. Addom, entrepreneurship and community to create, launch programme coordinator (ICT) and Oluwabunmi and prosper through their start-ups, and develop a Ajilore, junior programme associate (ICT4Ag). solid future for themselves and others in the region. The final document was edited by WRENmedia. The ConnectiMass team involved in the project was: Ingrid Riley, CEO; Samuel Suraphel; Tyrone Hall; and Papa Dembele. viii ICT Agripreneurship Guide ix Foreword Scaling up e-agriculture This guide has been prepared to provide entrepreneurship to accelerate introductory knowledge and recommendations to young people interested in developing e-agriculture socio-economic growth businesses. It is the first publication of its kind focusing specifically on needs of ACP countries. Agribusiness is one of the priority themes in It provides key insights into how to generate CTA’s Strategic Plan 2016–2020. This calls on the e-agriculture service ideas, customer discovery, Centre to “strengthen the significant and growing pool of hypothesis testing, strategies for developing entrepreneurial and innovative people … by supporting the successful business models, recommendations on organisational and entrepreneurship capacities of young how to formalise the business, and strategies to people.” This is the focus of this publication, which scale up services and ensure their financial builds on CTA’s experience of working with young sustainability. It also suggests key institutional people in the information and communication and documentary resources. technology (ICT) sector. Support for innovative youth agripreneurship is The populations of African, Caribbean and Pacific central to CTA’s programme. We hope that this (ACP) countries are growing rapidly and people are guide will encourage young entrepreneurs to enter living longer, driving increases in demand for food. the agricultural arena. We look forward to In Africa, urban food markets are set to quadruple collaboration with institutions willing to support to US$400 million a year by 2030 and total food and such young entrepreneurs in order to consolidate beverage markets are projected to be worth around youth employment and accelerate agricultural and US$1 trillion by then. This represents huge socio-economic growth in ACP countries. opportunities to create wealth and employment in the agri-food sector, especially for young people. Provided that conducive frameworks are put in Michael Hailu place to support their endeavours, today’s youth Director, CTA can, not only seize these opportunities by trading in agricultural products, but also by offering innovative and income-generating services to the sector. Work by CTA – such as the AgriHack Initiative – and others has demonstrated that ICT has a key role to play in supporting and enhancing the performance of economies, including in the agriculture sector. However, young innovators interested in entering this sector commonly lack key skills and knowledge. Many of them lack the basic business development knowledge needed to launch successful start-ups, in large part because they have not benefited from adequate business education. In particular, they lack knowledge on the agricultural value chain stakeholders and their needs, and on how to design successful ICT services for the agricultural sector. x ICT Agripreneurship Guide 1 Introduction Big opportunities Agriculture is so important in the African continent’s evolving income, population and The role of information and communication urbanisation dynamics that, in 2003, governments technologies (ICTs) in strengthening and promoting endorsed the Maputo Declaration on Agriculture agricultural enterprises has never been greater. and Food Security.3 The agreement aimed to slash Furthermore, governments, private sector, the continent’s food import bill of nearly US$35 multi-lateral and non-governmental organisations billion by earmarking 10% of public spending (NGO), and especially young people, are towards agriculture (Africa Progress Panel, 2014). increasingly viewing the intersection of ICTs and With increasing population, food security has the agriculture sector as a prime means of tackling become a critical issue, especially in Africa where the global youth unemployment challenge by the population will double, from the current enabling enterprise.1 The opportunity for youth estimate of about 1.2 billion, to 2.4 billion by 2050. employment in a merged ICT and agricultural Therefore, agricultural productivity needs to be sector represents a potential boon for enterprising strengthened radically to increase food availability. young people in African, Caribbean and Pacific ICTs, which are often spearheaded by youth (ACP)2 countries. (Rahman and Fong, 2016), can contribute to this. Below: © Jake Lyell / Alamy Stock Photo 2 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Through ICTs, youth are thus well positioned to Who should use this guide? help advance agricultural transformation, while improving their own livelihoods. Clearly, they also This publication is intended to be used in two need adequate support in this process. primary ways: • As a step-by-step road map for those about to Why this guide? start an ICT-enabled agribusiness. • As an accessible resource that can be used to This guide is designed to equip young aspiring ICT provide guidance on specific aspects of setting up entrepreneurs who are interested in creating (social) and running a business – from idea generation, businesses that address challenges in the to funding and scaling up. agricultural sector (including fisheries, livestock and forestry) with key information and knowledge This guide is intended for individuals/teams who that can help them to use ICTs effectively to launch are interested in creating enterprises in the ICT and agriculture-oriented businesses. It is aimed at agricultural sectors and also for those who are helping young entrepreneurs,4 in particular, to deal engaged in the sectors but are struggling to thrive. with the intricacies involved in conceptualising, It is relevant for social enterprise or commercially- launching and succeeding in a merged ICT and driven enterprise endeavours. It will be most useful agricultural enterprise. Therefore, knowledge to readers with at least a secondary school contained in this document covers agricultural education, basic business skills and computer value chains and stakeholders, ICT business literacy. Resources and pathways listed throughout challenges, effective business plans and models the guide will assist young entrepreneurs to leverage of designing, funding and scaling ventures. insights from others who have developed ICT4Ag ventures and push forward their own initiatives. Developed by a team of international agribusiness and ICT consultants with over five decades of New entrepreneurs can use the information cumulative experience,5 this guide presents users provided in this guide either prior to exploring with a road map for starting a business in the possible business ideas or after embarking upon agricultural sector using ICTs, and outlines key their ventures. Though sections are written in opportunities and challenges that will be order of a new company’s formation and growth, encountered when creating a business. Leveraging individual sections can be used as needed. real examples of challenges faced while developing businesses, the guide provides strategies and 1 Issues such as youth unemployment are predicted to worsen pathways for averting common mistakes faced by with rapid urbanisation. By 2030 50% of Africa’s population early-stage entrepreneurs using ICTs for agriculture is expected to live in urban areas (Leke et al., 2010). 2 The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States (ICT4Ag). As well as containing carefully selected is an organisation created by the Georgetown Agreement in case studies, business and product development tools, 1975. It is composed of 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific the guide showcases interviews from 17 states, with all of them, excluding Cuba, also signatories to entrepreneurs – from countries such as Ghana, the Cotonou Agreement (known as the ACP-EC Partnership Jamaica, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal and Uganda6 Agreement) which binds them to the European Union (EU). – to highlight best practices. Other inputs (boxes, There are 48 countries from Sub-Saharan Africa, 16 from the Caribbean and 15 from the Pacific. excerpts from articles) are from secondary research. 3 The Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security The guide is designed to serve as a comprehensive was signed by the African Union (African Union, 2013). 4 CTA defines ‘youth’ to be people in the age range of 15 to 35 introductory reference to entrepreneurs. The reader years old, as per the African Union definition. is strongly encouraged to read additional relevant 5 Spanning ICT incubation and start-up management, virtual publications detailing the issues discussed. Some of ICT consultancy services, agribusiness development, youth these publications are referred to throughout this entrepreneurship and policy development. 6 document, or in the appendices. Full list of organisations interviewed can be found in Appendix 1. Right: © Tetra Images / Alamy Stock Photo Idea generation, key skills and overcoming early challenges 4 ICT Agripreneurship Guide The early stages of any company are fraught with challenges that require: a) a strong focus on the core idea being developed; b) leveraging of necessary skills and human resources to develop the idea; and c) overcoming business and technical barriers. This section provides a selection of strategies to aid emerging ICT4Ag entrepreneurs. The chapter starts by outlining suggestions on how to develop and test a business idea by understanding the value chain – from research and development to retail. In understanding the value chain, the entrepreneur can then implement the process of market analysis and pretesting of a developed product. Identifying the key skills of the entrepreneur and The end of the chapter examines how, after all their team is an important next step which is of these considerations, the entrepreneur can explained. It is noted that outsourcing the key skills determine the potential success of the business to start and operate a small business is costly. With by using a three-step method to review what is in this in mind, early challenges of moving from idea demand and what is possible and engage in an early generation to execution are then identified, and strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats suggestions are provided on ways these can (SWOT) analysis of the business. be managed. Ideas, skills and challenges 5 Developing and testing the As illustrated in Figure 1, an entrepreneur can business idea: Understanding provide services to various customer segments and stakeholders besides farmers. An ICT solution agricultural value chains could be created to improve the efficiency of input suppliers, cooperatives, processors, exporters or When beginning an ICT4Ag venture it is important point-of-retail-sales, yet many entrepreneurs do to understand the agricultural value chain. not consider all of these existing gaps. An example of an agricultural value chain framework is presented in Figure 1. Young entrepreneurs who wish to venture into e-agriculture service provision should carefully Key cross-cutting enablers not illustrated in Figure consider specific areas and value-chain and 1 include financing and policy-making. These stakeholder segments that they could target in value-chain segments are also relevant for the other order to offer unique value propositions. components of the agriculture sector such as fisheries and livestock. Figure 1. Agricultural value-chain segments and stakeholders Input supply Production Post-production Marketing Consumption 1. Government 1. Small farmers 1. Butchers 1. Government 1. Individuals agencies 2. Large commercial 2. Abattoirs agencies (trade 2. Restaurants 2. Farm stores farms foreign affairs etc.) 3. Processors: • Trade policy 3. Hospitality 3. Service providers: • Milk • Traceability industry • Livestock • Meat • Regulators 4. Households association • Food (EPA) • Extension 5. School nutrition officers 4. Farmers 2. Wholesale/retail programs • Agricultural 5. Value added • Fresh markets 6. Prisons society intermediary • Supermarkets • International • Packaging/ • Retail shops 7. Military/national organisations labelling security 3. Trade & 4. Research • Traders promotion 8. Hospitals institutions • Transporters agencies • Animal Breeders • Storage • Training companies 4. Exporters institutions 5. Veterinarians 6. Water providers 7. Financier (Agri Dev Bank) 8. Food/nutrition experts 9. Regulators (e.g. public health) Source: Infocomm Technologies (2014) 6 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Case study 1 Case study 3 Hello Tractor: Integrating AgroCentral: Connecting agriculture with technology small farmers and buyers A great example of a young company taking AgroCentral, a Jamaica-based start-up, advantage of the broader value chain is Hello works to overcome the lack of market access Tractor (www.hellotractor.com), a social for farmers and help businesses access local enterprise focused on improving food and produce. They were able to achieve this income security throughout Africa by pairing by developing a marketing platform for the owners of low-cost ‘smart tractors’ with agricultural producers and a complementary farmers via an innovative SMS-based service. purchasing platform for businesses. In addition to individual farmers, Hello AgroCentral leverages both a web and mobile Tractor targets organisations that work directly platform, suitable for the level of ICT access and with farmers, including NGOs, financial connectivity of both buyers and farmers in the institutions, extension service providers and Caribbean nation. Additionally, the company farmer cooperative representatives. Examples offers online purchasing via the service, of the groups with which the company have simplifying procurement and tracking processes formal and informal marketing and distribution for all parties. As a result, AgroCentral tackles relationships include Fortis Microfinance major challenges in the local agricultural sector Bank, Cellulant and the National Agricultural such as the lack of transparency, access to Cooperative Organisation in Nigeria. larger market and mistrust between farmers, middlemen and buyers. Case study 2 Modisar: Livestock Case study 4 management made simpler M-Farm: Serving farmers in Modisar (www.modisar.com), a Botswana- Kenya based livestock information management start-up, was created when one co-founder, In Kenya, during a 48-hour technology a livestock farmer, wanted a system to better competition, Jamila Abass and fellow teammates, monitor the health of his cattle. From this produced an application, M-Farm, which experience, and noting the broader needs of helps farmers obtain more accurate market other farmers in the country, the co-founders, price information regarding their produce. Thuto Gaotingwe and Tebogo Dichabeng, Previously, a farmer’s only knowledge of market developed a web, phone and SMS-based system price was the price offered by middlemen that provides support for farm management trying to buy their produce. Combining their and financial reporting, while providing a computer science and entrepreneurial skills, the knowledge bank of articles and resources about team set out to produce an SMS- and web- on-farm management. They have modules based solution to provide current retail price to support animals, farm equipment, human information directly to farmers. Understanding resource management, sales, costs and overall the value chain further, the team later developed financial reporting. A social media presence means for groups of farmers to benefit from also provides an additional platform for pooled inventories of crops, and discounts on distributing resources and best practices to inputs gained from collective buying. All the their target audience. By empowering farmers information is put in a database and tracked via to keep better records and obtain rich farming the service. The platform has enabled farmers to knowledge, Modisar works to increase their access larger markets and better prices, and stay likelihood of long-term economic sustainability up to date with agricultural market trends. Ideas, skills and challenges 7 Entrepreneurs generally develop ideas by either on concrete customer feedback, which can boost connecting with a problem they have encountered or profitability potentials and avoid costly mistakes. by identifying existing needs in a given community. When the product is deemed to be ready for its Ideas are then generated in response targeted market, it is then officially introduced. to the needs observed. An initial solution is conceived in order to respond to Using a three-step method: What’s in demand, the demand or need identified. Market analysis is what’s possible, SWOT analysis then conducted to gather information about the There are three levels of analysis that can be demographic composition (age, sex, education level, conducted when determining the likelihood of civic associations, profession/job etc.) and trends in the success of a particular ICT4Ag venture, using what community to determine the target market and its is referred to as BMS (Big picture items, Middle nuances. Funds would then be sought from investors, view considerations and Self-assessment of the the government or other stakeholders. Further customer start-up). The BMS model proposed here does not development can be done. These steps are not replace business model analysis (our recommended necessarily chronological. Lean Startup approach or Business Model Canvas Once the target market has been defined, the product (BMC) tool will be discussed later in the guide). or service is developed and pretested with the target Though some middle view considerations can be group. Pretesting involves the entrepreneur trying to incorporated into the BMC, the BMS is focused gauge the reaction of potential buyers and users of the on providing a start-up founder or team with a product and/or service. Pretesting is very important framework for understanding their readiness to for obtaining feedback and making adjustments based invest in the sector and prepare them for this. Figure 2. BMS (Big picture items, Middle view considerations and Self-assessment of the start-up) analysis Big picture: Macro trends in the Agrifood landscape, ICT connectivity, ease of doing business Middle view: Identifying what part of the value chain and what ICT platform to use Firm SWOT analysis Source: Authors. 8 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Case study 5 Box 1 Mlouma and Mkulima Young: Country profiles Understanding the problem Key sites for general information on the For Aboubacar Sidy Sonka, the founder of agriculture or ICT profiles of countries can Mlouma the problem was clear. Because of be gleaned from FAO’s country profiles their lack of reliable market information, (http://www.fao.org/countryprofiles/en) and farmers are often shortchanged and offered the International Telecommunications Union’s poor prices by middlemen and farm-gate country profiles (http://www.itu.int/en/ buyers from the big cities. His solution was to ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/default.aspx). create Mlouma, a web and mobile platform Local ICT and communication regulators that will give farmers, and buyers and sellers also provide key data on information and of agricultural produce, current market communication status. information and guide their decisions on where to buy or sell their produce. The World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index provides For Mkulima Young, the problem is the founders with a quick and high-level view of what it declining interest of youth in agriculture will take to register a business and pay taxes, and and agribusiness. A clear picture of youth the ability to enforce contracts (World Bank, 2015). perspectives and tendencies lead to an This may not impact a go/no-go decision to start innovation that provides an online marketplace the ICT4Ag company, as all companies within the for young people wanting to buy or sell country face the same conditions, but it will provide agricultural produce. This improves the image useful background information for early-stage of many young farmers as users of new planning and resource allocation. technologies and attracts more youth to the platform and to agriculture. To manage this Considering the middle view new set of youth demand, the platform then ICTs can be leveraged across the agricultural value added a Q&A section to provide answers to the chain to improve areas including research and production and marketing questions of its users. development, access to inputs, production, marketing, wholesale distribution, retail and traceability. Therefore, firms need to identify which Understanding the big picture part of the value or service chain they seek to serve. Apart from using pre-existing knowledge of the Dalberg (2013) noted three areas with the highest agricultural makeup of a country or region the perceived ICT need within the agriculture sector: start-up wants to serve, the best approach is to supply-chain management; communication, search for recent publications, for example, by the awareness and marketing; and information country’s Ministry of Agriculture and international management. Two ancillary cross-cutting segments institutions such as the Food and Agriculture that also present opportunities are agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) or finance and risk mitigation (notably through CTA. Information to seek includes a government’s insurance schemes). priority cash and food crops, and livestock and/or fishery data. This information should also point to Start-ups should identify gaps in services offered along the region in which the agriculture activity is taking the value chain and avoid, if possible, areas where place. In addition, knowledgeable agricultural competition is very strong. For example, many apps experts could be consulted. are developed to improve general access to markets, but most of them struggle to generate revenue. Other Similarly, in a quickly developing telecommunications areas for which (social) entrepreneurship can be market, one must identify what level of connectivity ventured into are agriculture-related sectors such as and models of ICT use exist in the country/region livestock or fisheries, or issues and segments such as and, more specifically, for the potential target consumption of agricultural products, drone uses, etc. audiences of the proposed ICT4Ag service. The determining factor, however, should be the existence of actual needs and the ability to address customer values. Ideas, skills and challenges 9 Using ICTs in emerging markets requires a broad view of what technology will be used, its availability Case study 6 and whether there are adequate devices within the target population. Table 1 lays out a number of Musoni: Cloud-based options for mobile-based services. microfinance Self-assessing the start-up Musoni is a cloud-based microfinance system Lastly, young entrepreneurs should evaluate their that leverages mobile money, SMS and mobile actual potential to address the needs of the sector. apps to improve financial inclusion for people We recommend that they perform a baseline in rural areas in Kenya. For the founder, this SWOT analysis of their business. Following this is based on an understanding of both the assessment, the start-up can begin developing strengths of the platform and the increasing their business plan using tools such as the BMC. microfinance needs of the environment. To illustrate the SWOT self-assessment, we will Musoni’s platform improves the efficiency of take the case of a company created by two young microfinance systems and safety of the staff software engineering graduates from a top while boosting clients’ ease and satisfaction with university in Benin. They learned of a significant the transactions conducted with microfinance opportunity in the agriculture sector and, after institutions (MFIs). With its system, time taken looking at the big picture, realise that shea butter for loan disbursement has been largely reduced is a growth opportunity and that a specific ICT from the traditional 2 weeks to 2 hours. The application could improve its commercialisation flexibility of mobile access has been central processes. The description below is limited and is to its increasing adoption, as clients in rural provided only as an illustration. communities no longer have to disrupt their schedules or travel to conduct their finances. Strengths Other MFIs in Kenya are increasingly adopting The entrepreneurs have current and relevant ICT Musoni’s software to manage their operations. skills for developing a prototype service. Additionally, they will have access to other technically trained individuals who attended the same university. They have a high appetite for risk. Table 1 Options for mobile-based services Minimum delivery method requirements Minimum device requirements Basic: SMS Basic: Basic mobile phone Intermediate: Interactive Voice Response Intermediate: Basic mobile phone (IVR) Advanced: Feature phone, smartphone, tablet Advanced: Mobile and web-based applications Source: Woodard et al. (2014). 10 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Weaknesses As youths, who have not been exposed to businesses Case study 7 from their family contacts, they have insufficient training to make adequate business decisions and Mkulima Young and limited understanding of the regulatory framework Ensibuuko: Identifying gaps for ICT-based services/products. in the market Opportunities Mkulima Young, an online platform, taps Given ‘big picture’ and ‘middle view’ research, the into the drive to enhance youth involvement graduates know that more farmers are cultivating in agribusiness in Kenya by assisting young shea trees to service growing local and global people in agriculture with information, market demand. From the value chain, they have come to access and financing. The platform provides an understand that the process includes separating/ online marketplace for young agripreneurs to cracking, crushing, roasting, grinding, separation sell and buy agricultural produce and inputs. of the oils, then collecting and shaping the final In addition, there is a Q&A section where its product. The graduates are now positioned to staff and fellow farmers respond to agribusiness investigate where their ICT skills, from database questions submitted by young farmers. support to online marketing, can be applied to Although, the platform started with Facebook, reduce costs or increase sales for farmers. They which is its most popular online marketplace have identified local incubation and other business with over 60,000 followers, it expanded to other support programmes, and have identified potential social media platforms like Twitter and now has sources of funding their venture. an Android app. Ensibuuko, a Uganda-based company, Threats exemplifies the ability of an ICT firm to adapt The graduates have to contend with the lack of its products to market needs. Launched in May reliable infrastructure (power cuts, stagnant ICT 2012, the company sought to help farmers connectivity), and limited ICT literacy among the improve their access to markets while cutting target audience. Additionally, there are also out middlemen to save money. regional competitive threats from Ghana and Once Ensibuuko began providing SMS-based Nigeria where more established ICT4Ag companies services to connect local farmers to buyers, have developed ICT services to support the shea they noted that increased demand for farm value chain and could expand into Benin. products meant that the team had to assist Having carried out this exercise, the entrepreneurs farmers to access financing support. This should reflect on how to mitigate the weaknesses and led to the identification of another gap in the threats revealed by this SWOT analysis. For market, as local savings and credit cooperatives example, regarding the threat of regional companies (SACCOs), which traditionally provided loans expanding into Benin, the entrepreneurs could to individual farmers, had been struggling research these companies to identify how they serve to manage information and ensure efficient their customers and decide whether obtaining reporting of their members. In response to licences to operate these businesses in Benin is more this, Ensibuuko provided a platform that helps beneficial than creating a new service. They may SACCOs to manage information and reporting decide to identify gaps in the services the competitors and better deliver financial services to farmers. offer, notably the market segments they serve. After this SWOT analysis, they may then take an initial decision to move ahead with their Given the fast-developing nature of the ICT sector business idea. and previous work done in the ICT4Ag domain, new entrepreneurs can learn from a wealth of cases, which may be a source of inspiration. Analysis of the competition can also assist with unique product/service design. Box 2 lists a selection of tech-innovations developed by Africans in the agricultural sector. Ideas, skills and challenges 11 Box 2 Case study 8 Some popular ICT4Ag Ensibuuko and Farmerline’s innovations in Africa winning strategy: A variety of skill sets • Daral Technology facilitates livestock management (Senegal) Uganda-based start-up Ensibuuko has 10 staff • Farmerline provides accurate and timely members who are knowledgeable in finance, agricultural information to farmers and also ICT and agriculture. One founder, Otim provides technology to stakeholders so that Gerald, has financial experience and has they can work more efficiently (Ghana) managed start-ups, while the other founder, • iCow is an app that enhances and facilitates Opio David, has first-hand experience in livestock management (Kenya) rural farming communities. To complement • M-Shamba is an interactive platform for the current staff, 400 model farmers have smallholder farmers and traders (Kenya) now been trained through Ensibuuko to share • Mobipay provides technology solutions to their knowledge at the community level. various economic sectors to drive commerce From acting as a means to connect farmers to and trade (Namibia) available markets, Ensibuuko has been able • Mobis (Ensibuuko app) is a mobile platform to use its existing presence in the marketplace for the management of credit and loans for and relationships within the agricultural smallholder farmers and agricultural value chain to branch out and offer additional cooperatives (Uganda) services such as providing access to solar • Rangerland Solutions is an online power kits and mobile banking. livestock marketing platform that directly In Ghana, where there is one extension agent connects buyers and sellers, reducing for every 2,000 farmers, Farmerline was marketing costs (Kenya) founded to improve the collection of data • Redcore Interactive is a platform for from small-scale farmers while providing online international money transfers to them with information related to price, mobile money services (Uganda) weather and farming techniques. Farmerline’s • SmartMoney provides free branchless platform provides this information via mobile banking to unbanked rural traditional outbound text messaging, an communities (Tanzania and Uganda) Android application and voice-based • YieldUganda sources high quality, messages in local languages for farmers with traceable food products for local and export low literacy levels. The founders of Farmerline markets (Uganda) brought together a team that included people with master’s degrees in ICT, electrical engineering and business development to Source: AGRA (2015); Village Capital website7 (2015) build the original multiplatform system and ongoing web features. Additionally, the team includes staff with experience in building 7 http://vilcap.com/ relationships with agricultural extension agents who are key in maintaining relevant and appropriate content. In the face of growing demand for their services, they performed internal skills assessments and looked for additional staff. 12 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Reviewing and improving the team’s capacity Box 3 A common feature of ICT4Ag businesses is the Partnership: Key for challenges faced in recruiting and building the team. It is important to evaluate team members’ skills to Esoko and Daral ensure that they are able to work together to realise Technologies the goals set for the enterprise’s success. New skill sets should be brought on board when they are needed. Esoko, a Ghana-based service that provides market prices and other value-added To execute an ICT4Ag idea, knowledge of information to farmers, has partnered with agriculture and value-chain dynamics, the United States Agency for International business skills and technology skills like Development (USAID) to launch a farmer software development/coding are key helpline call-centre, which operates in requirements. For example, if the team has business 12 local languages. and agriculture skills but lacks technology skill sets, an entrepreneur may be able to compensate by Daral technologies is a Senegalese innovation partnering with technology companies. The benefits that uses nose rings to track cattle in order to of such a partnership should justify the cost of prevent theft. It enhances the traceability of outsourcing technical development of the product. the animals and prevents the risks and proliferation of infected meat on the market. Overcoming early challenges In addition, by working with government institutions it has been able to prevent an Moving from an idea to execution poses many epidemic at least once. Daral works with challenges for early-stage entrepreneurs. The Ministry of Agriculture in Senegal to promote following are key challenges often faced by the adoption of nose rings in its herds and is surveyed start-ups: working on developing a national register of farmers and livestock. This database will help Lack of available partnerships between government planning for the sector and start-ups and existing financial and/or enhances Daral’s profitability through governmental institutions information-sharing with agricultural The ICT4Ag sector is a relatively new sector that insurance companies. established institutions – government and financial – are generally still struggling to understand. This Capacity building and role of incubators/ is even more so in ACP countries. Because ICT4Ag accelerators innovations are often ahead of existing regulatory and financial frameworks, entrepreneurs may find Incubators are institutions that provide aspiring or themselves labouring more than expected to young innovators and entrepreneurs with a variety of establish partnerships with government and support services to help them develop, launch and financial institutions. Support from public scale up their products and services (Box 4). Services institutions is critical and possibly what is most offered can include office space, internet connectivity, lacking, usually because of this inadequate advanced coding skills, business development skills understanding. and contact with business partners, including potential investors. Accelerators offer advanced services and are However, research shows that these key challenges more relevant to young start-ups that have already can be managed successfully at the early stage developed a working prototype or that have already through a variety of means. Businesses can work begun offering their services. Incubators or together to build partnerships with donors, and accelerators can be run by civil society, academia, non-governmental and private-sector organisations government or private-sector institutions. In ACP interested in promoting agricultural activities or countries, there are more incubators than accelerators interested in investing in making agriculture more and many young ICT4Ag start-ups lack the support of productive. accelerators that can help turn their innovations into viable businesses and assist in scaling up. Many start-ups are still young and fragile, and need to be strengthened. Ideas, skills and challenges 13 • entering competitions sponsored by MNOs Box 4 • attending pitch competitions, events and meetings co-sponsored by MNOs to establish relationships Incubators and • seeking co-founders who may have worked for co-working spaces MNOs • negotiating with MNOs via a network of start-ups, The recent launch of co-working spaces and or supported by another powerful partner/ incubators across Africa allows entrepreneurs stakeholder – and not individually. to reduce office, electricity and connectivity Whereas many start-ups try to form direct constraints. For those in Accra, these include relationships with MNOs, they take a significant spaces such as Hub Accra and iSpace amount of time to develop, and are not transferable Foundation. Most major capital cities across from one country to another. As an alternative, Africa have similar locations, for example, start-ups can work with players that already have Jokkolabs in Senegal, Etrilab in Benin, Buni relationships with MNOs and have integrated into Hub in Tanzania and mLabs in Kenya and their value-added service platforms and payment South Africa. systems. These include Cellulant, Voto Mobile and Kopo-Kopo, all of which are service providers that allow you to bypass direct collaboration with an Apart from ICT incubators, agriculture incubators MNO. also exist in ACP regions. They are certainly best Most MNOs tend to take, unsurprisingly, a very placed to provide knowledge and networking related commercial approach to partnerships with young to agribusiness. An ICT4Ag start-up will benefit the start-ups. Young companies should strive to most if it receives support from both ICT and demonstrate their value and augment their traction9 agriculture incubators working in collaboration. in order to improve their bargaining power with Some key initiatives are worth mentioning: MNOs. If possible, negotiating with them as a InfoDev has been involved in the promotion of network of start-ups, and not individually, may be incubation at different levels and has supported a winning strategy. This however depends on the incubators interested in agriculture and ICT capacity and willingness of young operational (among others); AfriLabs, a network of African companies sharing the same strategic objectives incubators is an adequate interface to reach to join forces. incubators in Africa; finally, a new African Agri-business Incubator Network has Staff turnover recently been launched. Appendix 4 includes In many instances, staff members leave the contact details of such initiatives and a list of company after becoming highly trained and move selected incubation centres. to other businesses that may provide higher wages. To plan for this type of staff turnover, it is best to Poor relationships with mobile network consistently maintain a roster of potential new staff operators (MNOs) prevents start-ups from or create an internship programme for recent connecting with their value-added service graduates who can gain work experience while you platforms8 including mobile payment services evaluate them. To date, many start-ups operate outside of MNO infrastructure, or have difficulties collaborating 8 Telecommunications’ value added services can be defined with them to use their platforms. Telecom operators as services enabled notably by new technologies, rather than own infrastructure through which developers of other standard services such as the standard voice and fax ICT applications can reach agricultural offered by telecom companies. 9 Market traction can be defined as a proof that services of stakeholders who own a mobile phone. If a young a company are requested by the market – this may be the entrepreneur wishes to use these platforms to number of clients who have strongly expressed interest or provide information services (through, for example, have already paid for/subscribed to the service, promises or a short code like #222) to connected stakeholders, contracts secured, etc. they have to pay fees that are usually beyond their financial means. Ways to overcome these challenges with MNOs include: 14 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Case study 9 Agripro: Connecting young farmers Agripro, a youth-led venture based in Accra, Ghana, provides farm-to-market advisory services. These include investment finance, training, technologies that provide market access for organic fresh fruits and vegetables, and awareness programmes that encourage young people to pursue farming as a career through university-based farm clubs. To raise awareness of their services, Agripro has elected to use free social media tools such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google+ and Pinterest. They engage their followers by sharing topical information and keeping their clients informed of upcoming products, services and events. Right: © Gallo Images / Alamy Stock Photo Below: © CTA Developing the business plan 16 ICT Agripreneurship Guide As we move further into the digital age, ICT4Ag entrepreneurs are increasingly able to launch a start- up cheaper and faster than ever before by leveraging technology, access to wider range of skills, grants, competition money, crowdfunding and accelerator and incubator programmes. But everything starts with a plan. The ability to convert an idea to a business plan is essential, but few young entrepreneurs ever bother to complete a proper plan. Additionally, there are some ICT4Ag entrepreneurs The traditional approach entering the so-called start-up world in search of repeatable scalable business models, but since this A traditional business plan covers a wide range of is a nascent sector there are no particularly trusted topics necessary for a company to obtain financing, business plans or models that entrepreneurs can make future projections and effectively market to adopt. They will either have to import models from customers. other industries or create new ones themselves. ICT4Ag entrepreneurs can choose to take a traditional approach to developing a business plan or they can examine new approaches, such as the Lean Startup approach and its key tool, the BMC, which has become a standard tool used by many ICT-driven start-ups. Below is a brief overview of the traditional approach followed by a detailed explanation of the Lean Startup approach, which we recommend for ICT4Ag entrepreneurs. Developing the business plan 17 Table 2 Typical elements of a traditional business plan Executive summary Description of business Your executive summary is a snapshot of Your company description provides information on your business plan as a whole and touches on what you do, what differentiates your business from your company profile and goals. others, and the markets your business serves. • What is the business? • A brief description of the business idea and why it • What is the market? should be a success • What is the potential for the business? • History of the enterprise and its ownership • Forecast profit figures • Information about the entrepreneur’s qualifications, • Funding requirements experience and financial status • Prospects for the investor/lender Products and services The market • A description of the product and what it does • Size and expected growth of the market • An explanation of ways in which the • Analysis of market by segments product is distinctive and unique • Identification of target segments • Analysis of the competition • Competitors: who they are, ownership, size, market • How the product will be developed and share, likely response to the challenge what new products are being considered as • Customers (existing and potential): who they are, replacements where they are, how they buy, why they buy • Intangible assets and protection • Distribution channels (e.g. copyright, trademarks) Strategy and tactics Marketing: key questions to be answered • How are we to get there? • Who are the customers? • Outline the broad approach to achieving • Who are the competitors? the objectives • What is the size and growth rate of the market? • Describe the tactics (the details of the • How is the market segmented? strategy e.g. the promotional mix) • What is special about the product or service? • The detail will be contained in • What are the product/services’ competitive programmes and budgets advantages? • What is the marketing strategy? Marketing plan Operations plan • Market research • Physical location • Segmentation and targeting • The production process • Detailed outline of the product or service • Facilities • Unique selling points • Equipment • Chosen pricing strategy • Scale and location of operations • Promotional plans • Capacity – potential and actual • Distribution strategy (including online) • ICT strategy • Customer service strategy • Staffing requirements Management and organisation • Organisational chart • Training • Details of senior management • Rewards for staff and even service providers if • Corporate governance relevant (financial and non-financial) • Staffing requirements • Labour relations • Key personnel • Employment and related costs • Recruitment and selection 18 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Table 3 provides an example of the headings found Box 5 within their traditional business plan. Developing an According to many experts, such as entrepreneur and Lean Startup Advisor, Paul Foster, “a initial business plan: traditional business plan is full of assumptions and guesses” (Foster, 2014), which is why the Lean AgroCentral Startup approach and BMC tool are being seen as far superior methods, and can be used to start and AgroCentral is Jamaica’s first digital launch an ICT-enabled agribusiness. agricultural clearing house, using web and mobile services to connect farmers and businesses. Businesses have the ability to Lean Startup approach source large amounts of agricultural produce With the Lean Startup approach,10 an ICT-enabled directly from farmers and farmers are able to agribusiness is focused, first of all, on developing sell their produce directly to businesses. The what is called a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). solution aids farmers in locating markets for Popularised by Eric Ries, a consultant and writer their produce without the involvement of a on start-ups, an MVP is a technique in which a middleman. AgroCentral also helps businesses new product or website is developed with sufficient to streamline their purchasing processes. features to satisfy early adopters, yet the final, Their business plan was conceptualised by complete set of features is only designed and Janice Mcleod, a co-founder of the business, developed after considering feedback from the who has a bachelor’s degree in economics and product’s initial users. has been working as a business development consultant since 2009. She has assisted the 10 The Lean Startup approach is a method for developing formation of several start-up companies businesses and products first proposed in 2008 by Eric Ries. based in Canada, Jamaica, the United Arab Based on his previous experience working in several US start-ups, Ries claims that start-ups can shorten their product Emirates and United States by using the development cycles by adopting a combination of business- traditional business plan method. hypothesis-driven experimentation, iterative product releases, and what he calls validated learning. Table 3 Examples of headings found in a traditional business plan Executive summary Description of business Products and services The market Management team Milestones Market overview Market segmentation Information hub through blog Future product development Advertising strategy Revenue business model Revenue drivers Regional forecast Financial model Proforma balance sheets Expansion plans Logistics Developing the business plan 19 So in simpler terms, an MVP is the most pared down The BMC tool version of your product/start-up idea. Yet it still: This tool emanates from the Lean Startup • has enough value that people are willing to use it approach and can be used to launch ICT-driven or buy it businesses. Simply put, “it enables both new and • demonstrates enough future benefit for early existing businesses to focus on operational as well adopters as strategic management and marketing plans” • provides a feedback loop to guide future (Osterwalder, 2004). development. It has nine sections: Key partners, Key activities, The ideas behind Lean Startups can be drilled Value propositions, Customer relationships, down to a few straightforward actions: Customer segments, Key resources, Channels, • Deploy resources stringently, incrementally Cost structure and Revenue streams. A further proving assumptions that drive the business description on each element of the BMC tool can model. be found in Table 4. • Get customer feedback as early as possible. The BMC tool allows for ICT4Ag entrepreneurs to • Revise your product or service as quickly as plot out their ideas for any new or existing possible. businesses and test different scenarios before writing a single line of code. It’s a quick test and can be carried out in only 30 minutes, provided the required market information is available. Delivered on a single page, this tool is fast becoming the global ‘go-to’ method for plotting strategies and seizing ICT-driven opportunities. It can be used for both non-profit- and profit-focused agribusinesses. Table 4 Components of the BMC Key partners Key activities • Identifying private- • What key activities does the value proposition require? sector partners • W hat activities are most important in distribution channels, customer • Connecting with relationships, revenue streams etc.? partners (government, private sector, funders) Key resources Value proposition • W hat are the key • What core value will be delivered to the customer? resources that are • Which customer needs will be satisfied? already available The value proposition of the ICT-enabled agribusiness is about the collection and will be needed? of products and services the business will offer to meet the needs of its customers. It should speak to various elements such as newness, performance, customisation, getting the job done, design, brand/status, price, cost reduction, risk reduction, accessibility, and convenience/usability. The value propositions can be, for example: • Quantitative: price and efficiency • Qualitative: overall customer experience and outcome 20 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Customer relationships Customer segments An agripreneur must be clear Additionally, which customer segments are being targeted and who is about: the most important customer? • T he relationship the target To build an effective business model, the ICT-enabled agribusiness must customer expects them to identify the customers it seeks to serve. Various sets of customers can be establish segmented based on different needs and attributes to ensure appropriate • H ow they can integrate implementation of corporate strategy to meet the characteristics of selected that relationship into their groups of clients. The different types of customer segments may include: business in terms of cost • Mass market: there is no specific segmentation for a company that and format follows the mass market element as the organisation has a wide range of potential clients, e.g. potatoes • Niche market: customer segmentation based on specialised needs and characteristics of its clients, e.g. truffles • Segmented: a company applies additional segmentation within an existing customer segment. For example, the business may distinguish its clients based on gender, age and/or income • Diversify: a business serves multiple customer segments with different needs and characteristics • Multi-sided platform/market: for smooth day-to-day business operations, some companies will serve mutually dependent customer segments. A credit card company will provide services to credit card holders while simultaneously assisting merchants who accept those credit cards Sale/distribution channel Product or service cost An ICT-enabled agribusiness • Cost structure: this describes the most important monetary can deliver its value consequences while operating under different business models proposition to its targeted • Classes of business structures: customers through different - Cost-driven: this business model focuses on minimising all costs and channels. Effective channels having no frills will distribute a company’s - Value-driven: less concerned with cost, this business model focuses on value proposition in ways that creating value for their products and services are fast, efficient and cost- • Characteristics of cost structures: effective. An organisation - Fixed costs: costs are unchanged across different applications, e.g. can reach its clients either salary, rent through its own channels - Variable costs: these costs vary depending on the amount of (website), partner channels production of goods or services, e.g. food festivals (major distributors), or a - Economies of scale: costs go down as the amount of goods ordered or combination of both. produced increases - Economies of scope: costs go down due to incorporating other businesses that have a direct relation to the original product. Revenue stream identification This is where an agripreneur There are several ways to generate a revenue stream: has to answer the following • Usage fee: money generated from the use of a particular service questions • Subscription fees: revenue generated by selling a continuous service • F or what value are the • Licensing: revenue generated from charging for the use of a protected customers willing to pay? intellectual property • W hat and how do they • Brokerage fees: revenue generated from an intermediate service currently pay? How would between two parties they prefer to pay? • Advertising: revenue generated from charging fees for product • H ow much does each advertising. revenue stream contribute to overall revenues? Developing the business plan 21 An alternative to the BMC: The Lean Canvas A key component of the Lean Canvas is the Developed by Ash Maurya in his book Running ‘problem’ section, which is particularly important Lean (Maurya, 2012), the Lean Canvas tool is an for ICT agripreneurs, as most do not have a good alternative to the BMC. It is more focused on understanding of the agriculture sector. It is entrepreneurs and start-ups just being launched. particularly important to demonstrate a good The Lean Canvas model is thus more adapted to knowledge of the problem, which will help to better young ICT agripreneurs and is widely used for identify solutions. A table comparing the BMC and example by Eastern African tech hubs and ICT the Lean Canvas is included in Appendix 3. start-ups (irrespective of the focused theme: health, agriculture, entertainment or others). The Lean Canvas tool, like the BMC, also has nine levels, but some components are different (Figure 3). Figure 3. The Lean Canvas model. Problem Solution Unique value Unfair advantage Customer List your Outline a possible proposition Something that segments customer’s top solution for each Single, clear, can’t be easily List your target three problems problem compelling copied or bought customers and message that turns users an unaware visitor into an interested 1 4 prospect 9 2 3 Existing Key metrics High-level Channels Early adopters alternatives List the key concept List your path List the List how these numbers that tell List your X to acquiring characteristics problems are you how your for Y analogy customers of your ideal solved today business is doing (e.g. Youtube = customers Flikr for videos) 5 8 Cost structure Revenue streams List your fixed and variable costs List your sources of revenue 7 6 Source: https://leanstack.com/lean-canvas/ 22 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Case study 10 Problem Solution SlashRoots and M-Shamba: Weak technology Build a community Building business models Community/ecosystem Initiatives Ineffective government Research and The SlashRoots Foundation is a Jamaican policy support non-profit that leverages technology to create solutions to social problems endemic to the Donor consultant Caribbean region. SlashRoots works with Results and capacity governments, development organisations and civil society to improve public service Customer segments Channels programme design and delivery, with a focus Technology community Website on open innovation and user-centred design. Government institutions Mailing list SlashRoots also works to develop the regional technology ecosystem, facilitating the emergence Events of a technology industry that employs best M-Shamba is a Kenyan ICT4Ag start-up practice, engages in global discourse and is that uses SMS to bridge the information gap responsive to the Caribbean environment of between farmers and research institutions which it is a part. and markets. M-Shamba provides three Their five-strong lead team used the BMC tool categories of information services to farmers: at canvanizer.com to build their business model. production information; information on agro- The following are examples of the headings services providers in their locality; and market found within their Lean Canvas business plan information. (only some components highlighted). The start-up used the BMC, with other tools, to design a system with which they convinced service providers that needed to maintain contact with farmers to pay an annual subscription of US$8-US$15 depending on the service and population density of the area. As a result, M-Shamba has been able to attain financial sustainability and is now marginally profitable. “Validated learning is a process in which one learns by trying out an initial idea and then measuring it to validate the effect. Each test of an idea is a single iteration in a larger process of many iterations whereby something is learnt and then applied to succeeding tests. The term coined in the lean startup scene, but it can be applied universally.” Right: © Gallo Images / https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Validated_learning Alamy Stock Photo Formalising, sustaining and scaling your business 24 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Doing business comes with significant risks that are best minimised through formalisation. The formalisation process ensures your business venture is legitimised and protected. It is often extensive and varies significantly across sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean. However, these economies are rapidly evolving and the ease of doing business is generally improving. According to the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business and sharing costs, balancing the search for grants Index, 35 of the 47 economies in sub-Saharan Africa and product development, and leveraging existing implemented at least one regulatory reform – a total assets to gain income. Grants, microfinance and of 75 reforms – making it easier to do business in the private equity are recommended as the best ways June 2013 to June 2014 period (World Bank, 2015). to raise capital for a start-up. The Ease of Doing Business Index is an important marker as it speaks to aspects that are critical to Registering your business doing business, such as respect for intellectual Registering a business, for-profit or non-profit, is property (IP), the time it takes to register a business crucial in ensuring legal status and protection, and and the associated requirements. Since 2005, every credibility with current and potential suppliers and economy in Africa implemented at least one reform customers. However, registration also comes with measured by the globally recognised index. So the responsibility to ensure compliance. This notable are the improvements that sub-Saharan responsibility will vary based on the registration African countries make up half of the countries on status of the business (for-profit or not-for-profit), the list of the 10 most improved regulatory tax obligations, reporting procedures, internal and environments in the 2015 edition. Benin, Côte oversight of governance structures, and civic and d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), investment activities/engagements. The cost of Senegal, Togo and Trinidad and Tobago made the registering a for-profit start-up varies greatly across list of the most improved business environments. countries. This chapter details the various formal processes In DRC, for instance, it costs US$120 to register a required for a business start-up, including business business, compared with US$100 in Nigeria (70% name check and reservation, business registration, less than it was in 2013), approximately US$240 in IP registration and branding. The chapter then Jamaica, while in Kenya the total cost of registering looks briefly at bootstrapping, a concept that a business worth 100,000 Kenyan shillings (about involves taking into account the current realities US$990) will be approximately US$50. of early-stage business models, managing cash flow Registering, sustaining and scaling 25 Step 1 Registering your business name may include Business name check and registration additional steps depending on the country. All businesses must register a business name. The service of a lawyer/solicitor/attorney The first step is to fill out a ‘Name approval/ should be required and is recommended to name reservation’ form and submit it to a local complete these processes. companies’ registry/office and pay a fee that in most African and Caribbean countries is less than Step 2 US$10. This is a crucial process as similar and Protect products, ideas and branding identical business names to those already in use are Intellectual property rights prohibited. To avoid losing money, do not seek to The World Intellectual Property Organization register a name that is similar or identical to an (WIPO) defines IP as “creations of the mind, such existing one. The public records of business names as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; can be searched at a local companies’ registry/office and symbols, names and images used in commerce” for a one-off fee. Upon being satisfied that the name (WIPO, 2015). is original, it can then be submitted without fear of having it rejected. Box 6 African continent, formalisation and intellectual property rights issues are key to its structure. Creative Commons use During the course of registration, Farm Radio Ghana had its name and brand colours registered by Farm Radio (copyrighted) with the help of a solicitor or lawyer, Creative Commons and Open Source licensing are who not only assisted them to formally copyright alternative ways to manage intellectual property. the material but also exposed them to a Creative Commons and Open Source licensing are complementary process called Creative Commons complementary processes to copyright that allow licensing. originators of ideas to protect their work in a simple, Creative Commons licensing allows Farm Radio standardised way that gives the public permission to Ghana to protect their work in a simple, share and use their content, but only under the standardised way that gives the public permission conditions of their choosing. In a social to share and use their content on the conditions of entrepreneurship world in particular, building a their choosing. So whereas traditional copyright product with open source codes is common and can terms entitled them to ‘all rights reserved,’ they boost innovation in society. were able to alter the rights to ‘some rights Farm Radio Ghana, a division of Canada-based reserved’ and determine precisely what those are. Farm Radio International, is a non-profit ICT4Ag The advantage of this is that their creative works organisation that ensures that information can go viral on the conditions they set. A common required by small-scale farmers and rural condition is that works can be used but not for communities gets to them in a timely manner, and profit purposes, and if profit is involved then the is accurate and relevant. It is one of the divisions conditions are stipulated by Farm Radio. that serve the 500 radio stations that make up the Creative Commons licensing allows the owner to Farm Radio network, which works in 38 African give people the right to share, use, and even build countries to fight poverty and food insecurity, and upon a work they created, on their terms. An give rural communities a voice. Each programme advantage of Creative Commons licensing is that targets a listener base of approximately 200,000 it is free. There is also the benefit that as they seek people. In addition to radio broadcasts, listeners to build their own ICT4Ag businesses and can interact via their mobile phones using IVR services, entrepreneurs can access and/or use a systems to ensure that they obtain required wide array of works available on the internet information after the programme. under Creative Commons licensing to perfect Given Farm Radio’s membership in an their innovations. international network that spans most of the 26 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Case study 11 The social enterprise tackles a crucial problem Hello Tractor: Protecting IP as resource-poor farmers are undermined by labour shortages. This often leads to under- with patents cultivation, poor harvests and lost income. Hello Tractor is a social enterprise focused on Targeted farm mechanisation can effectively improving food and income security throughout deal with these challenges but small-scale sub-Saharan Africa. The company designed an farmers throughout sub-Saharan Africa lack innovative, low-cost ‘smart tractor’ to meet the access to tractors that can, for instance, improve labour needs of small-scale farmers. Equipped farm productivity. with various attachments, owners can tailor Given the degree of innovation involved, Hello its use for a variety of crops and stages of Tractor is keen to protect its intellectual property the production cycle, allowing them to serve rights. The company, which was created in 2014, their customers throughout the year. A GPS is working to secure a provisional patent for its antenna allows Hello Tractor to track its usage software that powers both the cloud-based and and gather data on location and uptake. The SMS services. company also uses a cloud-based booking system However, the company feels confident that its that allows farmers to conveniently request, first-to-market reputation and significant reach schedule and prepay for tractor services, from also gives it some protection with respect to nearby ‘smart tractor’ owners, through SMS copyright, which is true from a legal perspective. messaging and mobile money. Once the service is completed, the prepayment is automatically released to the ‘smart tractor’ owner. IP is valuable as it is protected in law. There are Patent various types of IP, including patents, copyright A patent is an exclusive right granted for an and trademarks but some jurisdictions recognise invention, which is a product or a process that additional classes, which allow owners to earn provides, in general, a new way of doing something, recognition and/or financial benefit from their or offers a new technical solution to a problem. To invention or creation. The intent of the IP system get a patent, technical information about the is to strike a balance between the interests of invention must be disclosed to the public in a patent innovators and the wider public in such a way that application. Getting patents is very demanding and enables an environment in which creativity and costly, and usually impossible for most young innovation can flourish (WIPO, 2015). companies in developing countries. It has to be How can creations and/or innovations be noted that software patents are impossible to get protected? under various jurisdictions. To protect IP, you must follow a formal process to either copyright, patent or trademark the ideas Trademark and work. A trademark is a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of Copyright another. Trademarks are protected by IP rights. Copyright is a legal term used to describe the rights Most entrepreneurs are unaware of the rigorous that creators have over their literary and artistic process needed to protect any unique creation or works. Works covered by copyright range from idea within their business. Additionally, they may books, music, paintings, sculpture and films, to also elect not to pursue a path to legally protect computer programmes, databases, advertisements, various portions of their IP due to a lack of ready maps and technical drawings. laws, ignorance, complacency and/or high costs of obtaining proper legal assistance. Of the start-ups surveyed for this guide, the extent of IP protection involved trademark protection, but little was done to identify or secure the IP of novel software code. Registering, sustaining and scaling 27 Therefore, if the service being provided will be largely available to the consumer online, obtaining Case study 12 a trademark to protect the brand should at least be considered. Farmable.me: A copyright A non-disclosure agreement, which is also approach known as a confidentiality agreement, may also Farmable.me is an innovative ICT-based food be used to protect IP rights to some extent. It is a security solution that also tackles the issue legally binding contract in which a person or a of limited agricultural funding in Ghana. business promises to treat specific information as Farmable.me uses a concept called ‘crowd a trade secret and promises not to share that farming’ to make farmers more efficient by information without authorisation.11 moving cattle farming online. In this virtual How to secure your intellectual property: farming scenario, people from around the Practical recommendations world can browse smallholder farms across Despite the trend to forgo IP for a myriad of Ghana and invest in them by buying all or part reasons, the global nature of ICT-based businesses of (up to 20 parts) a virtual cow. When a cow demands those with novel ideas and concepts to is fully paid for, it is linked to a real animal properly examine how to protect their IP rights in on a specified farm. The real cow is tagged advance of expansion to additional markets where with a radio frequency identification tag, and the IP regime is more established. Given the time the investor(s) can then follow the progress of and cost requirements, securing IP rights should be the cow, interact with the farmer and profit considered as an investment. once the cow has been slaughtered. The interactive tool, which uniquely leverages ICT There are a number of important steps that should and forward-thinking funding arrangements, be taken to protect a business and its creations, such as crowdfunding and cloud farming to inventions and ideas. Steps that can minimise the boost agriculture in Ghana, also centralises likelihood of encountering challenges in the event information about the cow that can help track of IP theft and greatly limit risks should a problem its health, welfare and ultimate readiness for arise include: slaughter. • R egister the idea formally. While Farmable.me does not yet have its • C onsider how the idea is discussed with or intellectual property rights fully secured, it revealed to partners. Discussing the business ideas makes use of a non-disclosure agreement on may help entrepreneurs to benefit from inputs its website and uses a lawyer who is involved from others (including peers), which can be in all cases. A non-disclosure agreement helpful, but there is also the risk of having the is also called a confidentiality agreement. idea stolen. If possible, build the idea first before It is a legally binding contract in which a talking about it. Having commercial visibility person or a business promises to treat specific often creates a market entry barrier for information as a trade secret and not share competitors. that information without authorisation • R ecord the idea in detail. (http://www.ip-watch.org/). • A pply for a trademark as soon as possible. • A sk for a non-disclosure agreement and/or get a This is important as an entrepreneur engages patent if possible. partners and team members who they divulge information to in a bid to secure Bear in mind that defending IP rights could be very their engagement. The documentation of expensive depending on the depth of an opponent’s Farmable.me’s services on its website and pocket and their ability to attract a good lawyer. in the media also provides some cover by This should not prevent a young start-up from objectively establishing its use of the software protecting its innovation, and this should be done as and its approach. quickly as possible. 11 http://www.ip-watch.org/ 28 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Branding Naming your business, and brand Box 7 development and management Logos All successful businesses have a clear image designed to elicit a specific line of thinking about Font-based logos use a type treatment (text) the company, its products and services. Effective with a twist to make its main identifier branding requires a defined identity to be created distinctive and relevant. Dell, IBM and Disney and sustained. The identity of your brand entails are ideal examples of this. Strict font-based the visual representations of the company or logos are uncommon in the agriculture sector, identity markers – namely a name and a symbol/ but Esoko, Syngenta and Agripro utilise logo that distinguishes it. The process of developing font-based logos. these identity markers is known as branding. Identity markers such as a name and logo that capture the essence of a business are important first steps as an entrepreneur prepares to register their Abstract graphic logos often have no clear or business. Once an original business name and logo detailed meaning but become associated with for the idea has been decided on, they should be the company over time. AgroCentral’s logo is trademarked. A relevant and memorable trademark a prime example of this. As the brand’s will help the business or product stand out from identity becomes more established, the image competitors and can help in promotion of the and the company will merge. Famed examples product in the future. of this include Apple, Nike and Shell. Brand development and management In much the same way people protect their personal identity to safeguard them from fraud and manage their reputation and credibility, brand identities ought to be carefully crafted and managed. Brand development and management should be contemplated as soon as the product or service is Key principles to designing logos ready to be pitched, as a solid brand concept helps • K eep it simple to justify credibility and explain ideas to funders, • M ake it memorable potential employees and partners. The process can • E nsure it is timeless take anywhere from a couple of weeks to months • S trive for versatility depending on the scope of the branding effort, but • E nsure it is appropriate (consider cross-cultural most start-ups can do a credible job, including implications). pretesting in 5-10 days. The process includes identifying the brand’s essential components, the terms of use and standard guidance on how the Key questions to consider in the branding brand’s identity markers ought to be used. The (logo design and naming) process careful management and promotion of a brand • W hat is the brand and how does the primary target requires using the correct copyright symbols on audience perceive it relative to the main documentation and products associated with the competitors? business. This further enhances ownership of ideas, • W hat is the brand value? Define the differentiating creations and inventions. It also creates resonance points in terms of the what, with colleagues and customers. how, to whom, where, why and when questions. • W hat are the components of the product/service and the rationale for building things that way (is it natural, organic, intuitive?). • W hat unique values, behaviours or thoughts should the brand say about the business? What personality should the brand have? How should it look, act and talk to ensure that it properly communicates the values and mission of the company? Registering, sustaining and scaling 29 • W hat kind of emotions (edgy, rustic, irreverent, Balancing the search for grants versus product familial, etc.) and perceived benefits (luxurious, development comfortable, affordable, durable, etc.) should customers associate with the brand? How should As many of the entrepreneurs surveyed for this the brand evolve over time? (Creative Market, 2015). guide stated, the initial funding for their company was derived from grants or contributions from A logo will fall in one of three categories – font- donor organisations. Largely structured as for- based, literal or abstract. While ICT-oriented profits, entrepreneurs do not plan for the staffing agriculture companies tend to combine elements required to continuously research, review and of these categories, their dominant elements allow apply for further grants that may become available. them to be assigned to one of them. This is despite the ever-present need to develop the product (detailed in the section describing the Lean Finances and your start-up Startup approach). Start-ups may find that bartering for services Bootstrapping provides another option for reducing the outlay of Investopedia.com12 defines bootstrapping as “A cash. For example, an entrepreneur may barter situation in which an entrepreneur starts a company with a grant writer to provide ongoing support for with little capital. An individual is said to be seeking and applying for grants in exchange for bootstrapping when he or she attempts to found and support on graphic design needs. build a company from personal finances or from the The co-founders of Farmerline have chosen to operating revenues of the new company.” The use fellowships such as Echoing Green and other current early-stage financing option for ICT4Ag small grants, to provide salary support along with entrepreneurs is often limited to savings or funds networking opportunities. This strategic use of accessed by competitions or grants. Though many grant resources, provides funding within a time- services are knowledge-based – meaning they don’t horizon and structure that are favourable for require capital-intensive equipment and machinery operating business owners. – even the basic costs of software development, and office and general administrative costs may be Generating revenue streams and beyond the financial means of entrepreneurs to sustain during the first years of their venture. sustainability Therefore, there is a need to sustain the business As the majority of expenses for a nascent ICT4Ag until revenue generation begins (bootstrapping). entrepreneur are likely to be related to cost of living, there may be a need to gain additional employment Managing cash flow and sharing costs or contracts with another entity. One way of doing To retain cash, entrepreneurs have to reduce general this is by providing direct services to other businesses and operational expenses to the lowest level possible. (not necessarily in agriculture). The closer the Tech entrepreneurs, in general, accomplish this by industry segment of the client business is to using shared resources such as office space, the agriculture or ICT, the more cross-relevance will internet, power and tools like cloud hosting. The exist for future use of the developed solutions. expenses that remain will then be the cost of the 12 founding team’s time and that of additional support. http://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/bootstrapping.asp, consulted in July 2016 Bringing on a co-founder is also a form of sharing costs, though it must be done only when the person is providing substantial value to the start-up at the seed stage, assisting with the refinement of the core concept, providing necessary skills that complement other founding members. Firms such as Farmable. me, SlashRoots, AgroCentral and Farmerline have all benefited from the ability to pull from their co-founders’ knowledge and experience, as opposed to procuring the skill from a third-party provider. 30 ICT Agripreneurship Guide To increase revenue streams, many ICT4Ag companies have added consulting services to their Case study 13 product line, in addition to subscription services, and online transaction fees. Companies such as Edyn: Crowdfunded Growth Mosaic13 (Ghana) and SlashRoots innovation ( Jamaica) all provide project-based consulting services to agripreneurs. This not only provides Edyn is an innovative ICT4Ag start-up that needed income during periods when other products designs solar-powered smart sensors that are in development, but can also develop into measure soil moisture, soil temperature, separate and self-sustaining services. humidity and light, nutrient level and other important soil data and stream them to Farmerline, for example, was able to leverage their the cloud. SMS- and voice-based platform to support the 2014/2015 Ebola response by developing local- Being a hardware-based innovation with language messages for farmers in Ghana. Using this its capital outlay, and because of limited experience, they were then able to market their financing, the founders had to leverage on existing capacity to support health sector initiatives the crowdfunding platform – Kickstarter – to in Liberia, Sierra Leone and other countries. fund the initial development of their product. Agripro runs a monthly event called ‘Accra Green Market’ to promote organic produce and lifestyle In the early stage of an entrepreneurial venture products. By providing an opportunity for farmers funding may come from a range of sources: to showcase their goods in an urban setting, personal income, family income or loans, grants, Agripro is able to stay engaged in the value chain microfinance, commercial loans or private equity. and also generate additional revenues. Whether and how much these funding sources are used will vary widely for each person and business, Raising capital as they are dependent on the founder’s financial Funding is essential for any business idea to be position, ownership of assets and the general realised. Raising capital constitutes an important availability and accessibility of loans in the country. part of a company’s financial planning, which Commercial loans, in particular, are costly and affects rollout, sustains operations and guides even low-subsidised loans often prove difficult to scaling up. All businesses require an initial access for young ICT agripreneurs. Below is a brief investment. How innovative the ideas for raising description of sources of funding (grants, capital are will have a bearing on the growth microfinance and private equity) more suited to the pathway and viability of a business. Initial nature of this emerging sector and guidance as to fundraising requirements and activities should be when and how to tap these facilities. based on an analysis of expected expenses. ICT- Grants and prizes enabled agribusiness operations are fairly new, and as such face above average scrutiny from funders. A grant is funding/support for a given period that does not need to be repaid. Grants are available 13 A Ghanaian business that helps companies in their growth from a wide variety of sources including strategies. government (central, local), NGOs/community- based organisations, foundations, development agencies (national, regional and international) and some commercial entities. While grants aren’t reimbursed, they are made with conditions, namely strict reporting standards, performance targets and spending limitations, and they will end at a particular point. Even in cases where they are renewable, the conditions could be onerous given the size of the business and available human and technical resources. Registering, sustaining and scaling 31 Honouring the terms of a grant will require well organised planning and competent staffing. Case study 14 Careful planning can help meet the strict reporting standards for grants, so the aim should be to Esoko and Moringa Connect: maximise the use of grant funding to limit debt Grant funding and depletion of equity. Esoko won a US$1.1 million grant from A wide range of grants exist and will require the UK’s Department for International significant research to identify. A good starter Development to start operations in six Eastern resource to use for grants in agriculture, forestry African countries. This grant allocation is part and the environment is the Terra Viva Grants of a programme called ‘FoodTrade East and scheme, which develops and manages information Southern Africa’. The goal is for Esoko services about grants for the developing world.14 Local to reach 3 million farmers by 2020. As Esoko youth, finance and community development expands to other countries, it is seeking local ministries are also good starting sources for grants partners to help adapt and develop its activities. and awards. Many start-ups including Modisar used prize Many governments have launched funds to money from local innovation challenges promote agribusiness and youth development. sponsored by MNOs or various organisations. While government and non-governmental Ghana-based Moringa Connect which trades supports are still insufficient, there is an emerging moringa based products via ICT platforms, community of impact investors.15 To attract these raised start-up capital from partners of the funds, ICT4Ag entrepreneurs must pitch their Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) products or services in a highly effective and and various grants, while the founders were convincing manner. students at the institute. The team were then Prize money won in various competitions is a awarded scale-up scholarships and access common source of funding. The benefit of this to the MIT D-lab (Development through approach is that there are fewer or none of the Discovery, Design and Dissemination). stringent requirements for how the funds can be utilised – as is often the case with grants. However, contests with substantial prize money are infrequent Private equity and could distract start-ups given the time Often young entrepreneurs with great ideas or commitment they require. promising businesses get easily frustrated when they Leveraging funds from the 3 F’s exhaust funding sources or can’t find any in the first A start-up will likely need to either leverage place. However, most young entrepreneurs do not financing from the three F’s (friends, family, fools), consider one source that can be used to expand or bootstrap or tap into a combination of both. This bring their ideas to life: equity. Equity – or offering was certainly the case for the majority of companies a stake in the company in return for investment – is interviewed for this guide. a valuable tool for funding entrepreneurial ventures. If an entrepreneur owns all of their new Loans start-up or business idea, they own 100% of the Many young rural entrepreneurs tap into in company’s equity. Each time the entrepreneur microfinance as a source of funding for their offers a proportional ownership stake in their start-ups. Getting money from microfinance venture in return for funding, their stake, or equity, institutions is not as prohibitive as getting a loan is reduced. from a regular bank and there is more flexibility to return money. Conversely, some microfinance loans 14 http://www.terravivagrants.org/Home/view-grant- are costlier than commercial loans, which often makers/group1-agriculture-fisheries-forestry traps entrepreneurs. So it is important to compare 15 Impact investors are individuals who invest in and contrast interest rates and repayment terms organisations with the clear intention of generating social (duration, penalties, etc.) for the amount you intend and environmental impacts and with less focus on high financial return. to borrow before deciding on a loan institution. 32 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Everyone who is given equity (a relative, a peer, a Although an entrepreneur may seem to be losing stranger) for funding becomes a co-owner and may part ownership of the idea or business through the require a flexible horizon for a return on their private equity route, it does bring more resources investment – often dependent on the amount (financial and human) to move a small and fledgling invested – and proof that the product/service has effort into something bigger and more viable. traction in the market. However, the entrepreneur Ultimately what a young entrepreneur once fully has full control over how much they are willing to owned becomes more valuable as the business redeem for funding. Equity therefore can be of expands. As such we recommend using as much value and is an underutilised means of raising funds grant funding to get started before leveraging for start-up business ventures among young people. equity, but if a start-up has a significant skills gap After exhausting grants and microfinance options, and it does not have the resources to source and pay which are often limited in range, young for these, equity should be offered as a means of entrepreneurs can use equity to raise funds to start attracting the skills. Equity, therefore, can aid a or expand ventures. business in doing two things – attracting key skills without paying upfront and locking in funding. It has to be specified that this kind of funding requires the start-up to demonstrate an effective market traction. Right: © Gallo Images / Alamy Stock Photo Scaling up 34 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Scalability is the ability of a nascent business to grow. It means a business can adapt to a larger workload without compromising performance or losing revenue. Scaling is particularly challenging for ICT4Ag businesses due to poor business models, planning and dependence on donor funding, which often ends after pilot projects. Scalability requires the right systems, people and mindset, otherwise you run the risk of scaling prematurely, which can be a costly mistake. Companies make greater use of a wider range of resources, primarily money, people and systems to capture greater market share when they are on the cusp of scaling. It is for this reason that scaling is considered one of the most serious times (due to risks, the ability to secure the needed resources and uncertainties to get market traction in the new market/segment) in a company’s evolution. Scaling up 35 Box 8 result of Public Private Partnerships – private sector owning the IP/product and contributing funds; Sustainable and scalable donors contributing additional funds to buy down the risk; and NGOs providing initial technical business models assistance and field staff. (...) (The following is an article extracted from CTA’s ICT How can business models increase Update Magazine, N°80, August 2015) the scale, sustainability and impact of Why is it important to consider different ICT4Ag-enabled services? business models in ICT4Ag? I think we need to be more creative about how we Most of the products that I see in the market today go to market. It is easy to get excited about the large can be defined as either direct-to-farmer (the numbers of underserved farmers, but they can also majority of products) or business-to-business (a be a challenging customer to acquire and monetise. growing segment). The direct-to-farmer model was We need to think about other value-chain actors, the focus for many of the first generation of ICT4Ag particularly businesses that will more easily products – many of which were donor- or NGO- understand the value of ICT solutions and have driven and focused more on farmer impact than on money to pay, and think about how to create sustainability and scalability. Direct-to-farmer products that serve their needs while also providing products are exciting because of the large potential value to farmers. If we can leverage existing market customer base, but very few businesses have been actors to register farmers (by providing them value able to translate that potential into reality, even for doing so), we can drive down our farmer those with clear value and low costs. (...) acquisition costs dramatically. Business-to-business models targeted at agricultural I am also excited about the possibilities for businesses are starting to get more attention now. integrating digital financial services into ICT4Ag These businesses are often better positioned to products. Digitising value-chain payments should understand and quantify the value of ICT solutions be a quick-win – simply by moving existing cash (e.g. transparency, visibility, farmer loyalty and cost payments onto mobile money or digital platforms, of sourcing), and thus can justify paying for them. (...) we can increase transparency and safety for businesses and farmers, and decrease costs of How are business models being used in sourcing. We also drive transactions, which is a core different ICT4Ag sectors? revenue stream for mobile network operators and Much of the donor- and NGO-driven efforts have financial institutions. We should also look at focused on direct-to-farmer models – typically integrating savings, credit and insurance products providing agronomy content, weather content or that are leveraging mobile phones, as they can drive market prices directly to farmers for a small fee or for financial inclusion for farmers. free. Private-sector players are a bit more varied – you have mobile network operators that are offering We also need to think through how to monetise the a similar direct-to-farmer content product, and are data we collect on farmers. An ad-based business banking either on direct revenue from the product model is probably not feasible in most markets (via subscription or per-piece fees) or are looking for today, but there are other ways to monetise data, indirect benefits linked to their core business (e.g. some of which could have incredibly positive more subscribers, stickier SIMs, mobile money impacts for farmers. If we think about sharing transactions, reduced churn and increased average ag-payment data with financial institutions, we revenue per user). You also have private-sector have the potential to make those farmers players using business-to-business ‘B2B’ models creditworthy and drive financial inclusion for targeting businesses in the value chain – we have millions. Obviously we must be vigilant about seen Farm Force, M-Farm, Connected Farmer and misuse and privacy concerns, and I expect the others play in this space. industry as a whole to actively address this. The reality is that there are very few clear winners Michael Elliott is TechnoServe Regional Programme yet in the ICT4Ag space – few businesses that have Director of the Connected Farmer Alliance covering Kenya, achieved scale and sustainability. I think that many Mozambique and Tanzania. of the products that eventually succeed will be the 36 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Right: © Mile 91/Ben Langdon / Alamy Stock Photo Below: CTA (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) Common mistakes, solutions and advice 38 ICT Agripreneurship Guide This chapter presents nine common problems faced by ICT4Ag start-ups and their solutions. It ends with advice from ICT4Ag entrepreneurs. Common mistakes and Why? It suggests others did not buy into the vision. their solutions Entrepreneurial ventures, especially in technical and agricultural fields, are difficult to structure and require multiple skill sets that are often only traded Single founder for equity. Even in cases where an individual can Problem: Single founder status can limit potential. perform the varied tasks required, colleagues are Most successful companies and start-ups tend to needed to brainstorm and contemplate difficult have many founders although one of them may be decisions with and to boost morale (Graham, 2006). more prominent than the others – acting as the face Solution: Talk with your friends and explore your of the business. Single founder companies do exist network to find partners. Strong co-founders will and many become successful, but there are unique increase the chances of success as it brings more challenges. Single founder status can hamper ideas to the table, and boosts morale and ownership. funding and outreach efforts as it is seen as a risk. Mistakes, solutions and advice 39 Solution-in-search-of-a-problem Choosing the wrong platform Problem: Products and services that are Problem: Building an application on the wrong developed without a primary purpose almost platform can be catastrophic. Platform could mean always fail. This is because without a clear purpose “an operating system, or a programming language, or issue to be addressed, entrepreneurs are unable or a ‘framework’ built on top of a programming to identify who to convince to buy the service or language” (Graham, 2006). It implies something product and often spend limited resources (possibly that both supports and limits, like the foundation all) trying to pitch it to non-existent or of a house. Platforms affect service delivery unidentifiable customers. The solution-in-search-of- experience/usage and accessibility, so this is crucial. a-problem challenge is often exacerbated by a Solution: Choose the right platform(s). One sure failure to listen to consumers. way to do this is to hire good programmers and let Solution: Market research or customer development them choose. Consulting with computer for small-scale businesses. Do not be too rigid with departments at universities to see what they are your ideas. Be open to changing direction. using is also an option as they tend to use cutting edge platforms with less vulnerabilities. Not listening to the customer Problem: The old adage ‘the customer is king’ Inappropriate location rings true in business at all times. Failure to listen to Problem: The ICT and agribusiness sectors, like and understand customers can pose serious many others, are often negatively affected by poor challenges to the viability of a business. location, which affects funding opportunities, Solution: It is important to first understand who service/product quality and customer satisfaction. the ideal or target customers are. This allows a Solution: Given the nature of this emerging sector, start-up to spend limited resources in a more two key factors should determine where ICT4Ag targeted fashion rather than ‘try a little bit of businesses are located: 1) infrastructure to enable everything’ with no clear sense of how to measure the development and delivery of the service/ impact. In taking this approach, entrepreneurs are product; and 2) proximity to talent pool and able to adapt their products and services to meet the supporting industries or likelihood of talent needs of existing and potential customers. This relocating to the location. These factors combine requires active and continuous listening that may to boost the prospects of an ICT4Ag venture in take the form of market research (customer various ways from location to location. discovery or development) to identify who to reach, where to find them and how they will react to 16 www.next2.us promotional activities and services. 40 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Bad choices of team members Poor understanding of finance and Problem: Choosing the wrong team is one of accounting (and related matters) the costliest errors entrepreneurs make because Problem: Accounting reporting standards are it results in the loss of income and time, and often complex and come with little guidance. depletes morale, on which businesses, particularly As a result, start-ups tend to violate these rules or start-ups, thrive. incur significant unanticipated costs in hiring Solution: It is crucial to choose people with professional help. varying skill sets, as well as those with whom an Solution: Budget for professional accounting help. entrepreneur shares common values and the ability Invest more time in understanding accounting to trust in difficult circumstances. This aspect of reporting standards. Contact designated business is akin to a sports team. Each player brings government departments and business support specific expertise to the table and is only allowed to organisations about informational sessions on these play their position if the team trusts them to deliver. standards. So past experiences of working with co-founders and early employees under difficult conditions Poor understanding of the legal should be given more credence than friendships or and regulatory environment family ties. Participating in group problem-solving activities can allow an entrepreneur to gauge Problem: ICT regulations almost always lag team-fit among potential partners and employees. behind innovation. This, in tandem with the This also applies to corporate governance in terms myriad complex requirements for setting up of who is appointed to a board to provide oversight. businesses, and keeping them in good standing with tax rules, labour laws and corporate governance, often poses significant challenges for established Too much focus on raising money businesses and more so for emerging ones. Problem: Start-ups demand the full attention of Solution: Seek legal support from local businesses, founders in the early stages. Although securing and development agencies and incubators. When hiring managing funding is a crucial aspect of this process, legal talent, even those with experience, ensure they founders run the risk of focusing on raising money have relatable experiences. This is crucial given almost to the exclusion of many other equally the complexities of the emerging ICT and important things: understanding the customer, agribusiness space. building the product, managing staff etc. Solution: Set clear funding goals and track the time spent sourcing funds versus other tasks. This will serve as a guide and keep everyone on track during day-to-day operations. By making sure goals are specific, measurable, attainable, results-based and time-bound (SMART), founders can identify where they want to go and outline specific steps that they will take to get there while reallocating time and other resources to core business management functions when necessary. Mistakes, solutions and advice 41 Advice from interviewed entrepreneurs The following table presents a selection of advice provided by established and emerging ICT4Ag entrepreneurs. Organisation What advice would you give to a peer who is contemplating or about to start a business in ICT4Ag? Modisar (Mudisa It’s not easy, but it can be done if you are determined. Keep working hard and Net Pty. Ltd.) eventually people will listen. Hello Tractor • Don’t try to build a business around a request for proposal (RFP). To build a good business will take 1-2 years of business planning. Be committed to something and stick to it. If a RFP comes in the meantime, good, but focus on your sector or product. Focus on a pain point (the problem or need a business or company aims to solve) in the market and find funding that’s non-dilutive. • Don’t build a product that a donor is asking you to build around a grant. You’re given a short window to solve a really big problem, which is not realistic. Commit yourself to the product and let the donor money fall where it fits. • Take the private-sector approach to create value in the market. Agripro Understand agriculture, and use design thinking to see how the farmer will use the product. Execution before planning. Don’t worry about technology. Farmable.me Just start. There are problems, but just keep going. Find out and link with people who are already in the agriculture sector. Growth Mosaic Prototype, prototype, prototype. Have a good product before you begin piggy- (Ltd.) backing off of the development sector. Build something and show that it works, get customers and customers’ testimonials. Esoko • Starting an agribusiness is frustrating because adoption is slow. Be prepared financially for the early stages. • Understand the industry before starting, and understand that it requires cash flow to keep growing until you break even. • Build a network within the industry. 42 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Organisation What advice would you give to a peer who is contemplating or about to start a business in ICT4Ag? Ensibuuko Be part of the process, network, have commitment and openness to people, and be very active in the development of the enterprise. Climate Having access to information is important as well as learning skills. Being passionate Wednesday about the work is paramount, even when money is not coming as fast as hoped. TechnoServe Proper documentation benefits and leverages other players for expertise and Uganda reach. SlashRoots Be clear about the problem that you are seeking to solve and do not go the way of creating a solution that needs to find a problem. AgroCentral Just get things done. Put together a great team. Farmerline Everything comes back to a team. If you are an ICT person, find a business partner. If you are a business person, find an ICT person. The character of your team makes the difference. Only a few of the companies founded in 2012 are still around. The team should be skilful and willing to take less money. Serve Africa Constantly experiment with programme models and don’t lose hope if the situation is difficult. Diaspora Angel There’s a lot of opportunity. Hurry up and get started. Don’t wait any longer. Investment Network (DAIN) Moringa • First and foremost, be encouraged that you are good for pursuing this route. Connect ICT is an enabler, so aspiring ICT4Ag entrepreneurs should invest in learning. • Get operations right as there are so many opportunities to get things wrong. Pilot every stage of the business with as little cash as possible, and use the remaining cash to scale it. Right: © Damian Prestidge/CTA Conclusion 44 ICT Agripreneurship Guide It is hoped that this guide has provided a road map of the opportunities and challenges likely to be encountered when launching an ICT4Ag business. The ICT4Ag sector is just emerging. Though there are copious opportunities to create In order to effectively start an ICT4Ag business, sustainable and impactful businesses, few ICT4Ag it is important to have a basic understanding of the businesses are currently making profits, but many value-chain structure and process, and to ensure are generating revenues. The future may then be that team members have the required background brighter. Venturing into this sector requires: to run the enterprise successfully. There are • p atience, discipline and ingenuity challenges that will be encountered, such as the lack • i nnovative products/services – which requires a of support from the financial services sector and the clear understanding of the agriculture value chain government, because of insufficient awareness of and the variety of stakeholders involved the potentials of ICT4Ag businesses. • o penness to underutilised fundraising tools such As a result, strong partnerships must be built with as equity local media stations and organisations to spread • expense and cash-flow management, and cost awareness and, eventually, garner support. sharing • balancing the search for grants versus product When determining the likelihood of success in a development particular ICT4Ag venture, there are three major • leveraging existing assets to gain income. investigative steps the entrepreneur has to follow: big picture (knowledge of the host country’s business environment and macro trends for crop consumption); middle view (identifying what portion of the value chain to focus on and what ICT platform to use); and a start-up-based SWOT analysis. Conclusion 45 A negative view of agriculture, limited and Governments must also factor agriculture into their inaccessible capital (finance), and poor business efforts to scale up youth-oriented funding schemes for climate are among the chief impediments to young entrepreneurs. However, governments must provide ICT4Ag entrepreneurs across ACP regions. greater incentives for agriculture and efforts to Agriculture is still viewed as a largely subsistence optimise the sector through ICTs. The mix of and unprofitable activity. This view affects how incentives includes grants, concessional loans with innovative pitches, plans and requests for finance are sector-sensitive repayment terms, and capacity treated. Changing the perception of agriculture from building opportunities. This approach offers a unique a merely manual, low return, strenuous and purely opportunity to help boost skills and open funding on-farm activity is a crucial step in altering the mechanisms for a wide array of young ICT4Ag fortunes of the sector. business-minded young people that will drive The negative perception of the sector is deeply employment creation and boost food security. entrenched and is manifested most evidently in terms Governments should also do more to ensure that of the availability of capital and finance in general. young entrepreneurs are better able to protect their IP. The issue of capital and finance for agriculture ICT4Ag businesses like Hello Tractor, Ensibuuko and operates at both private sector and government level others have developed innovative technology-aided (where already limited youth-oriented finance schemes solutions and tools, with real value, in the agriculture that spur entrepreneurial ventures do not consider the sector. In almost all cases young ICT4Ag specific nature of the agriculture sector). In the private entrepreneurs have not protected their IP in formal sector, agriculture is conceived as a high-risk ways, often because they do not know how and/or enterprise and so loan requirements (collateral) and simply cannot afford to do so. Adding legal services to terms (interest, repayment period and general small business development agencies and youth conditions) are onerous (beyond the means of both entrepreneurship programmes can help to resolve this young and older farmers). challenge. IP offices can also do more to simplify the As we seek to resolve these issues the banking sector process by creating templates eliminating the need for must acknowledge that although the ICT4Ag sector lawyers, which is possible in most cases. may be risky, there is great potential for long-term Aside from leveraging resources and information growth, especially given the increasing demand for that improve the chances of a venture succeeding, food consumption in the fast growing populations of the most important factor is to START. Making a the ACP region and the efficiencies being enabled by plan and acting on it is the most common attribute of technologies. These new ICTs allow for agricultural successful entrepreneurs. While an ICT4Ag business risk to be mitigated through innovative crop insurance takes a long time to generate profit, it is important to schemes; sector and crop-specific repayment periods, be patient and persevere regardless of the obstacles. including linking repayment with reaping periods; and linking interest rates with expected yield, given that economies of scale assist with mitigating risk. So greater financial support for the ICT4Ag sector is crucial and it is the private sector that will be the lead. 46 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Although ICT4Ag businesses are nascent, and Once the business has started, the foundation should many already in operation are experimenting be laid for future expansion. It is important that an with a number of revenue streams, we are seeing entrepreneur thinks about the nature of that the emergence of a few that should most likely lead expansion periodically and the timeframe over to profitability: which it is likely to occur. Scaling a venture requires • C onsultancy fees from serving partners and an ability to create, test and repeat a process that customers – this includes leveraging on their benefits more customers without disproportionately technological and agricultural expertise to guide adding costs that will lead to the loss and eventual partners’ businesses demise of the venture. In countries across the ACP • S oftware development and white labelling of region, this means delivering services using the most software (where a product or service developed by prevalent devices found among target customers. one company is re-branded and re-sold by another) Using widely available technologies such as radio allows others to sell the branded service, while the broadcasts and SMS, coupled with an operating start-up maintains and supports the core model that leverages established and local teams to technology implement or provide ongoing support, serve as key • W orking with NGOs on grant-funded projects components to growing revenue or impact, while • P hysical and online marketplaces that connect running a lean operation. buyers and sellers • R esearch, data collection and aggregation services • Advertising. Right: © Damian Prestidge/CTA References and Appendices 48 ICT Agripreneurship Guide References Africa Progress Panel. 2014. Grain, Fish, Money: Infocomm Technologies. 2014. ICT uptake and Financing Africa’s Green and Blue Revolutions. Africa usage in agricultural value chains in the Caribbean. Progress Panel, Geneva, Switzerland. Available at: Caribbean Agricultural Research and http://www.africaprogresspanel.org/publications/ Development Institute, St Augustine, Trinidad and policy-papers/2014-africa-progress-report/ Tobago, and the Technical Centre for Agricultural [Accessed 4 August 2016]. and Rural Cooperation, Wageningen, the African Union. 2013. AU Summit Declaration on Netherlands. Agriculture and Food Security in Africa. African Leke, A., Lund, S., Roxburgh, C. and van Union, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Available at: Wamelen, A. 2010. What’s Driving Africa’s Growth. ftp://ftp.fao.org/TC/TCA/CAADP%20TT/ McKinsey&Company [online], June 2010. African%20Union%20declarations/Maputo%20 Available at: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/ declaration.pdf [Accessed 4 August 2016]. economic_studies/whats_driving_africas_growth Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). [Accessed July 2016]. 2015. Africa Agriculture Status Report 2015: Youth in Maurya, A. 2012. Running Lean (2nd edn). O’Reilly, Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa. AGRA, Nairobi, Sebastopol, California, USA. Kenya. Osterwalder, A. 2004. The Business Model Ontology: Creative Market. 2015. ‘10 Graphic & Web Design A Proposition in a Design Science Approach. PhD Thesis, Tools That Will Explode in 2015’. Creative Market University of Lausanne. Available at: http://www. [online], 26 January 2015. Available at: https:// hec.unil.ch/aosterwa/PhD/1.pdf [Accessed July creativemarket.com/blog/2015/01/26/10-graphic- 2016]. web-design-tools-that-will-explode-in-2015 Rahman, R. and Fong, J. 2016. Innovate for [Accessed in July 2016]. Agriculture: Young ICT Entrepreneurs Overcoming Dalberg. 2013. Impact of the Internet in Africa: Challenges and Transforming Agriculture. The Establishing Conditions for Success and Catalysing Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Inclusive Growth in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and Cooperation (CTA), Wageningen, The Senegal. Dalberg, New York, USA. Available at: Netherlands. http://dalberg.com/documents/Dalberg_Impact_ Woodard, J., Weinstock, J. and Lesher, N. 2014. of_Internet_Africa.pdf [Accessed 4 August 2016]. Integrating Mobiles into Development Projects. United Foster, P. 2014. Startup Business Plan vs Business States Agency for International Development Model Canvas. The Business Therapist [online], (USAID), Washington, United States. Available at: 9 June 2014. Available at: http://thebusiness http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/ therapist.com/2014/06/startup-business-plan-vs- documents/1861/M4DHandbook_August_2014. business-model-canvas/ [Accessed July 2016]. pdf [Accessed in July 2016]. Graham, P. 2006. The 18 Mistakes That Kill World Bank. 2015. Doing Business 2016: Startups. Paul Graham [online], October 2006. Measuring Regulatory Quality and Efficiency. Available at: http://paulgraham.com/ World Bank, Washington DC, United States. startupmistakes.html [Accessed July 2016]. Available at: http://www.doingbusiness.org/ reports/global-reports/doing-business-2016 [Accessed in July 2016]. 49 World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). 2015. What is Intellectual Property? World Intellectual Property Organization [online]. Available at: http://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/ index.html#ip [Accessed in July 2016]. Additional web resources Name Web link Babban Gona http://www.babbangona.com/purchase-from-bg-members/ e-agriculture Knowledge Base http://www.e-agriculture.org/knowledge-base-resources Venture Capital Ghana: Ghana Angel http://www.venturecapitalghana.com.gh/?launch=gain# Investment Network Canvanizer (allows testing of Lean www.canvanizer.com Canvas) Why the Lean Canvas Approach http://www.ashmaurya.com/2012/02/why-lean-canvas/ 50 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Appendix 1 List of organisations interviewed Name of Title Organisation Type of Country survey organisation respondent Thuto Paul Co-founder Modisar Private sector Botswana Gaotingwe (Mudisa Net Pty. Ltd.) Jehiel Oliver Founder/ Hello Tractor Private sector Nigeria CEO Edison Gbenga Founder Agripro Private sector Ghana (Accra and Cape Coast) Kamal Yakub Co-founder Farmable.me Private sector Ghana (Volta, Upper East, Upper West, Northern Region) Benjamin K Ghana Farm Radio, Public sector/ Ghana (all regions) Fiafor Country Ghana government Farm Radio International Director headquarters is in Canada but also has offices in seven African countries. Wayne Founder/ Growth Mosaic Private sector Ghana Miranda CEO (Ltd) Francophone West Africa Frances Adjei Content Esoko Private sector Uganda (all regions, and Benjamin Manager but particularly in the Gyan-Kesse and Business Northern, Upper East Development and Upper West regions). Also has an office in Kenya, with resellers in Benin, Burkina Faso, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania, Opio Founder and Ensibuuko Entrepreneur Uganda Obwangamoi CEO David Marthe Founder FADER NGO/civil society Benin Montcho 51 Name of Title Organisation Type of Country survey organisation respondent Olumide Idowu Team Leader Climate NGO/civil society Nigeria Wednesday Charles Monitoring TechnoServe NGO/civil society Uganda Mugoowa and Uganda Evaluation Manager Matthew Co-founder SlashRoots NGO/civil society Caribbean McNaughton Jermain Henry Co-founder AgroCentral Private sector Jamaica Alloysius Atta Co-founder Farmerline Private sector Cameroon Ghana Sierra Leone Kody Casamance Serve Africa NGO/civil society Senegal Emmanuel Youth Agriculture Project Worlali Senyo ICT and DAIN Social enterprise Ghana Agricultural (private sector) Advisor Kwami Co-founder/ Moringa Private sector Ghana Williams CEO Connect United States 52 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Appendix 2 Web presence for organisations interviewed for guide Organisation Website Modisar www.modisar.com (Mudisa Net Pty. Ltd.) Hello Tractor www.hellotractor.com Agripro http://www.agriprohub.com Farmable.me www.farmable.me Farm Radio Ghana www.farmradio.org/country/projects-ghana/ Growth Mosaic (LTD) http://www.growthmosaic.com/ Esoko www.esoko.com Ensibuuko http://www.ensibuuko.com/ FADER https://agricultureaufeminin.wordpress.com/tag/fader-benin/ Climate Wednesday http://www.climatewed.org/ TechnoServe Uganda http://www.technoserve.org/our-work/where-we-work/country/uganda SlashRoots http://slashroots.org/ AgroCentral www.agrocentral.co/ Farmerline www.farmerline.org Serve Africa https://www.facebook.com/serveafrica.senegal DAIN http://www.dainnetwork.org/ Moringa Connect http://moringaconnect.com/ 53 Appendix 3 The Business Model Canvas vs the Lean Canvas Element Business Model Canvas Lean Canvas Target New and existing businesses Start-up businesses purely Focus Customers, investors, entrepreneurs, Entrepreneurs purely consultants, advisers Customers Lays emphasis on customer segments, Does not lay much emphasis on channels and customer relationships customer segments because start-ups for all businesses have no known or tested products to sell Approach Lays down the infrastructure, lists the Begins with the problem, a proposed nature and sources of financing and solution, the channels to achieving the anticipated revenue streams of the the solution, costs involved and the business anticipated revenue streams Competition Focuses on value proposition in Assesses whether the business has an quantitative and qualitative terms unfair advantage over the rest and how as a way to stay smart in the market to capitalise on it for better grounding Application Fosters candid understanding, Is a simple problem-solution creativity, discussion and constructive oriented approach which enables the analysis entrepreneur to develop step-by-step Source: https://canvanizer.com/how-to-use/business-model-canvas-vs-lean-canvas 54 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Appendix 4 A list of some ICT hubs in ACP countries Caribbean Eastern Africa Slashroots Foundation Outbox Jamaica Kampala, Uganda Website: http://www.slashroots.org/ Website: http://www.outbox.co.ug/ Email: hello@slashroots.org Phone: + 256 752 624 006 The Community Hub Corporation mLab East Africa Barataria, Trinidad and Tobago Nairobi, Kenya Website: http://mycommunityhub.org/ Website: http://mlab.co.ke/ Email: info@mycommunityhub.org Email: info@mlab.co.ke info@helpinghands.com kLab Phone: (868) 222-8177 Kigali, Rwanda TMIL – Telesur Multimedia Innovation Website: http://klab.rw/ Laboratory KINU Hub Paramaribo, Suriname Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Website: http://tmil.datasur.sr/info/index.html Website: http://www.kinu.co.tz/ Email: info@tmil.sr Hive CoLab The Branson Centre Kampala, Uganda Jamaica Website: http://hivecolab.org/ Website: http://bransoncentre.co/caribbean/ Email: info@hivecolab.org Email: info@bransoncentre.co Phone: +256 392 177 978 Phone: +1.876.632 5134 Buni Hub/Tanzict Caribbean Climate Innovation Centre Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (Jamaica/Trinidad and Tobago) Website: http://buni.or.tz/ Website: http://caribbeancic.org/ Email: brian@buni.or.tz Email: prinfo@src-jamaica.org ( Jamaica) jumanne@buni.or.tz mail@cariri.com (Trinidad) Phone: (876) 927-1771-4 ( Jamaica) / IceAddis (868) 662-7161/2 (Trinidad) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Website: http://www.iceaddis.com/ Startup Grenada Email: contact@iceaddis.com (government-supported/owned) Phone: +251(0) 11 553 4776 Grenada Website: http://startupgrenada.com C4DLab Phone: 473-440-7011 Nairobi, Kenya Website: http://www.c4dlab.ac.ke/ National Centre for Technological Innovation Email: hello@c4dlab.ac.ke (NCTI) (government owned) Phone: +254 705 047 432 St. Vincent and the Grenadines Website: http://www.svgncti.org/ Email: office@svgncti.org Phone: +1 784 485 6915 55 Western Africa iBizAfrica Woelab Nairobi, Kenya Lomé, Togo Website: http://www.ibizafrica.co.ke/ Website: http://www.woelabo.com/ Email: ibizafrica@strathmore.edu Email: contact@woelabo.com Phone: +254 703 034280 Phone: +228 93 54 08 26 iHub EtriLabs Nairobi, Kenya Cotonou, Benin Website: http://ihub.co.ke/ Website: http://www.etrilabs.com/ Email: info@ihub.co.ke Email: info@etrilabs.com Habaka Madagascar Innovation Hub Phone: +229 20 21 64 43 Antananarivo, Madagascar +229 66 84 73 96 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/habakamg/ Wennovation Hub Email: contact@habaka.org Ibadan, Nigeria Impact Hub Website: http://wennovationhub.org/ Kigali, Rwanda Email: ibadan@wennovationhub.org Website: http://impacthub.rw/ Phone: +234 (0) 90 900 02648 Email: connect@impacthub.rw EcoHub Togo Phone: +250 (0) 785 527 562 Lomé, Togo 13 BP 129 Lomé Tél. +228 98 49 42 42 / 90 17 49 72 Southern Africa Email : ecohub@ecohub.tg mLab Southern Africa Website: http://www.ecohub.tg/ Pretoria, South Africa CIPMEN Website: http://www.mlab.co.za/ Niamey, Niger Email: derrick@mlab.co.za Website: http://www.cipmen.org/ Phone: +27 012 844 0240 Phone: +227 20 35 11 02 BongoHive +227 91 33 91 24 Lusaka, Zambia CTIC Website: http://bongohive.co.zm/ Dakar, Senegal Email: contactus@bongohive.co.zm Website: http://www.cticdakar.com/fr/ Phone: +(260) 97 867 2508 Email: contact@cticdakar.com Phone: +221 33 889 77 88 JokkoLabs (Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Burkina Faso etc.) Dakar, Senegal (headquarters) Website: http://dakar.jokkolabs.net/ Phone: +221 33 827 38 31 56 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Appendix 5 Supporting ICT innovations Successful apps emerging from the hackathons that and entrepreneurship by youth are currently in use include MoBis (by Ensibuuko in Uganda), Farmdrive platform (by Farmdrive in in agriculture Kenya) and CropGuard (by the Addis Alem This publication has been produced under the Cooperative in Barbados). framework of CTA’s Agriculture, Rural In May 2015, ARDYIS won the United Nations Development and Youth in the Information Society World Summit on the Information Society Project (ARDYIS) project. A key activity of the project is Prize. Its blog competition (YoBloCo Awards) and the AgriHack Talent Initiative, which supports ICT the AgriHack Initiative were two of the activities innovation and entrepreneurship in agriculture highlighted on this occasion. among young people aged between 18 and 35 years. From 2016, CTA is focusing on the entrepreneurial Co-designed with young people and partners from side of the AgriHack Talent Initiative, with the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, emphasis on support to existing young start-ups, the AgriHack Initiative includes competitions to including (but not limited to) those created through develop information and communication past hackathons organised by CTA and other technology (ICT) applications for agriculture institutions. CTA looks forward to continue (hackathons) and the identification of existing collaborating with entrepreneurship or business applications and support to them through capacity development institutions, farmer organisations, building, mentorship and incubation of start-ups. agricultural institutions, incubators, investors and Promotional and networking opportunities are also other interested stakeholders. Collaboration offered to the most promising participants, including opportunities can address piloting developed through involvement in other CTA activities. One applications, capacity building, incubation for such activity is the Plug and Play events that innovators/entrepreneurs and investment showcase promising products to audiences attending opportunities. key meetings. For more information contact lohento@cta.int AgriHack hackathons and incubations have been and visit http://hackathon.ict4ag.org and successfully implemented in Eastern, Southern and http://www.pitch-agrihack.info. Western Africa and in the Caribbean. An all-ACP competition during which pre-selected start-ups presented their apps to the industry and investors (dubbed Pitch AgriHack) was run in 2016, with the final held in Nairobi in collaboration with the African Development Bank1. So far, some 600 young innovators and entrepreneurs have been involved in the hackathons and start-up competition and more than 20 ICT hubs or institutions from 15 countries have been involved in the activities. The Initiative has engaged with ministries in charge of ICT and agriculture, regional organisations (including the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute and the Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions) and the private sector (e.g. Microsoft and Telesur). 57 58 ICT Agripreneurship Guide Notes About this publication This Handbook provides a step-by-step roadmap designed to equip aspiring ICT entrepreneurs with the information and knowledge they need to start an ICT-based business in the agricultural sector, outlining key opportunities and challenges that will be encountered along the way. Using real-life examples, it provides strategies and pathways for averting common mistakes faced by early-stage entrepreneurs. Topics covered include agricultural value chains and their stakeholders, ICT business challenges, effective business plans and models for designing, funding and scaling ventures. Contact us CTA PO Box 380 6700 AJ Wageningen The Netherlands Tel +31 317 467100 Fax +31 317 460067 Email cta@cta.int Website www.cta.int www.facebook.com/CTApage @CTAflash Cover photo © Damian Prestidge/CTA