Meet Adviser Ama, a 30-year old investment professional based in Nairobi, who advises entrepreneurs and investors on deal-making in Africa. In this episode, Adviser Ama and Entrepreneur Mugisha, engage with two potential investors, David and Andrew, who keep changing their requirements for funding Mugisha’s business.

Almost two years into the pandemic, Covid-19 has rapidly accelerated the digital transformation of economies globally. For businesses in some parts of the world, such as Pacific Asia, Covid-19 has fast-forwarded digitalization by more than 10 years. However, not all countries have seen a boost to their digitization efforts during the pandemic.

Development finance institutions (DFIs) and commercial investors run the same marathon but use different methods to get to the finish line. While commercial investors typically invest directly in companies that can promise high short-term returns, DFIs provide risk capital for enterprises

Expo 2020, the first World Expo in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia provides a great opportunity for Gulf countries to rebuild their economies as they recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, the event could add up to AED 122.6 billion (USD 33 Billion) to the UAE GDP alone between 2013 and 2031 and as many as 905,000 job possibilities, resulting in a 1.5 percent rise in the UAE's estimated annual GDP.

A popular Kenyan saying goes, ‘Vitu kwa ground ni different’. The Swa-English phrase literally means ‘things on the ground are different, different from how they are portrayed online or in popular publications. One can apply the same lens to the World Bank’s recent decision to pull their flagship Doing Business report after an audit revealed that Bank and IMF officials altered report data to benefit China’s and Saudi Arabia’s rankings in 2018 and 2020

Adviser Ama is a 30-year old investment professional based in Nairobi who advises entrepreneurs and investors on deal-making in Africa. In this episode, Adviser Ama and Entrepreneur Mugisha meet Investor Clyde. While Clyde says that his fund helps high-potential businesses go-to-market, Mugisha soon finds out that it all may be too good to be true.

Dubai has long recognized the importance of startups as agents of innovation and catalysts to economic growth and development. At Expo 2020, there are various programs both by the Expo organizers and the participating pavilions to promote entrepreneurs.

The Malaysia Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai features four showcases that highlight the country’s burgeoning agricultural-commodity sector, technological strength, culture, and tourism, all while promising zero net emissions. As its economy recovers from COVID-19, the mega-event offers an opportunity for the country to attract tourists, investors and strategic partners to take its recent strides to new heights.

The UAE government recently proposed an amendment in the UAE Bankruptcy Law (Federal Decree No.9 of 2016) which aims to support viable businesses that are experiencing financial difficulty in the context of an “Emergency Financial Crisis”, a situation which affects trade and investment in the UAE and which expressly includes the ongoing pandemic.

The lithium and battery storage sector is dominated by a handful of markets, but surging global demand coupled with increased traction of the element are now generating exciting new partnership opportunities across emerging markets. As countries scramble to diversify the existing China-dominated lithium battery value chain, Zimbabwe, the UAE, and Estonia are three key players we believe should partner to capitalize on the growing lithium market.

As Expo 2020 focuses on urban development and planning as one of its key thematic areas, it is critical to recognize the efforts made by country pavilions as well as private companies to boost the environmental efficiency and sustainability of urban planning and development solutions.

Adviser Ama is a 30-year old investment professional based in Nairobi who advises entrepreneurs and investors on deal-making in Africa. In this episode, Adviser Ama and Entrepreneur Mugisha meet Investor Billy. While things seem promising from the mega-fund manager, who seems eager to add Mugisha’s company to his portfolio, it turns out that all is not what it seems…

A growing number of organizations are shifting their giving strategies to African-founded organizations. We highlight three philanthropic organizations making dedicated efforts to integrate racial equity, particularly by funding Black-founded organizations, into their grantmaking approaches.

This is part 4 in a series exploring what a paradigm shift in how consultants consult could look like in the 21st century, especially given our tendency to superimpose linearity on a world that is, more often than not, circuitous at best. 

Under the theme “Connecting Minds and Creating the Future,” Dubai's Expo 2020 will showcase several technology initiatives that may have far-reaching implications for the future of global business in a digital-first world.

Expo 2020’s theme “Connecting Minds and Creating the Future” encapsulates the promising future of Dubai’s content creator industry. The UAE has developed influencer-friendly policies and tapped content creators to raise awareness of government initiatives and accelerate social and economic change.

Adviser Ama is a 30-year old investment professional based in Nairobi who advises entrepreneurs and investors on deal-making in Africa. In this episode, Adviser Ama and Entrepreneur Mugisha meet Investor Kevin, who requires that entrepreneurs join the Flat Earth Society to secure an investment. Read more and laugh below.

As Serbs and other Balkan nations, like Montenegro and Slovenia, participate in the upcoming Expo 2020, the UAE should consider deepening its ties in the Balkan region — both for economic opportunities and geopolitical gains. The Balkans, on their part, should fuel their economy by leveraging Expo 2020 to showcase their geostrategic value.

Since winning the Expo bid in 2013, the UAE government has doubled down on investments in areas like transportation, logistics, marketing, and tourism to make the Middle East’s first World Expo a success—and a sustainable one at that.

China may be the largest lender to emerging markets, but it is not the creditor that Africa should be most concerned about. The Covid-19 pandemic highlights the need for countries to rethink their relationships with commercial lenders, especially when it comes to seeking debt relief or renegotiating the terms of existing debt.