In my early encounters with both seasoned and newbies in financing for development, documenting and reporting for the outreach and communication, it became obvious there are huge misunderstandings on both sides from the aisle (donors-investors and recipients)… Specific to sub-Saharan Africa, and also to a larger extent other places in the world, when expectations will not be communicated, roles left to assumption, this could jeopardize the “relationship” ordinary framework. Whether risks are downplayed or returns overblown, it’s my role to reasonably define key necessary each parties make certain the Plan forward is well understood and updated if required.
In today’s sub-Saharan Africa’s investment needs framework, it’s likely that opportunity gap will probably be affecting insufficient 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 will be provisioned without much comparison to its medium and lasting impacts maybe in sync to local private actors’ interests. The lost decades of increase in the seventies, finding yourself in part used on such poor planning cycles from donors’ perspectives.
Due to early stage’ markets in sub-Saharan Africa, investors tend to be made up of local entrepreneurs, with a small number of trans-border participation in these business opportunities. Endogenous investors often gain from residual setbacks and unfulfilled demands from donors’ investments. Despite, the African supermarket expanding with estimates showing that it will likely be worth US$1 trillion by 2030 up on the current US$300 billion. Key challenges remain to allow optimal transition with their enterprises into thriving businesses.
Recipients representing most 90% on the development aid resources are poised, with practically no preparation, in order to meet 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, requirement for food is also projected to at the least double by 2050.
These trends, and also the continent’s food import bill, estimated in a staggering US$30-50 billion, indicate that opportunity exists for smallholder farmers, already producing 80% with the food we eat.
At this Juncture, there’s obviously no interaction between donor’s perspective, entrepreneurs and beneficiaries. Wherever resource allocation is sought to being made, caused by skills scarcity and institutional instability, better outreach and communication must be conducted for sake of ownership thereby accountability in project deliverables…