In my early encounters with both seasoned and newbies in financing for development, documenting and reporting within the outreach and communication, it became obvious we now have huge misunderstandings on both sides with the aisle (donors-investors and recipients)… Specific to sub-Saharan Africa, and a larger extent other regions in the world, when expectations will not be communicated, roles left to assumption, this may jeopardize the “relationship” in this framework. Whether risks are downplayed or returns overblown, it’s my role to reasonably define key required each parties make certain the Plan forward is well understood and updated as required.
In today’s sub-Saharan Africa’s investment needs framework, it’s likely that opportunity gap are going to be affecting not enough performance in areas highly generally known as much widely used so that local livelihoods count on. Basic infrastructure in food, agriculture, health insurance and education has been provisioned without much relation to medium and long lasting impacts or perhaps in sync to local private actors’ interests. The lost decades of increase in the seventies, when i was in part allotted to such poor planning cycles from donors’ perspectives.
Due to early stage’ markets in sub-Saharan Africa, investors in many cases are made up of local entrepreneurs, with hardly any trans-border participation in these business opportunities. Endogenous investors often gain from residual setbacks and unfulfilled demands from donors’ investments. Despite, the African food store expanding with estimates showing that it is going to be worth US$1 trillion by 2030 up on the current US$300 billion. Key challenges remain to allow optimal transition of these enterprises into thriving businesses.
Recipients representing most 90% on the development aid resources are poised, with hardly any preparation, to meet up with the delicate task of producing the grains and harvesting it with aid of women and families within a typical smallholders’ farmer settings. On that note, interest in food is also projected to a minimum of double by 2050.
These trends, combined with continent’s food import bill, estimated with a staggering US$30-50 billion, indicate that the opportunity exists for smallholder farmers, already producing 80% from the food we eat.
At this Juncture, there may be obviously no interaction between donor’s perspective, entrepreneurs and beneficiaries. Wherever resource allocation is sought to being made, because of skills scarcity and institutional instability, better outreach and communication must be conducted for sake of ownership and therefore accountability in project deliverables…