Focus On Africa: A Look At HBS Involvement

Social Enterprise Newsletter, Winter 2003

With struggling economies, crippling civil wars, and the devastating toll of the AIDS epidemic, Africa faces many daunting challenges at the beginning of the 21st century. Yet for business leaders who strive to make a difference in the world, there is much opportunity to bring positive change to this region. Through faculty research and student involvement in fellowships and internships, Harvard Business School is investing its intellectual capital in Africa with the hope of learning valuable lessons and helping to bring a bright future to the continent.

There Must Be Hope

Professor Debora Spar Discusses Her Research on Africa

Professor Debora L. Spar's interest in Africa began with her research in the diamond industry, which is largely concentrated in Africa. More recently, she has written a case study with Assistant Professor Rawi E. Abdelal on the democratization of South Africa since the end of apartheid. That case was taught in last year's Business, Government, and the International Economy course. She is currently working with Assistant Professor Laura Alfaro to study what has become one of the few success stories from this region: the economy of Botswana, which is among the fastest growing in the world. "We want to learn more about the secret of its success," Spar says, "because so little research has been done on it."

Spar has also written two cases on issues surrounding the AIDS crisis in Africa, which has killed more than 2 million people and left more than 3 million currently infected. "I'm particularly interested in the controversy surrounding the international expansion of intellectual property rights," she says. "How do pharmaceutical firms that make AIDS drugs deal with the crisis? These drugs could save millions of lives, yet if you give them away for free, how does it impact the intellectual property system?"

What Spar finds intriguing about Africa is that it was mostly left behind in the economic boom of the '90s; while foreign investment soared around the world, it had little impact in Africa. "If you really want to talk about globalization, you must include Africa—but Africa hasn't participated in it yet," she says. While the reasons are complex, she believes that a key problem is the political environment, including rampant corruption and civil wars marked by devastating genocide. "It might seem hopeless," she says, "but there must be hope. We'll all pay the price if we don't find solutions to these problems."

By increasing Africa-focused content in the curriculum, Spar hopes that HBS students will see the tremendous potential the region offers. "What's exciting about Africa is that the opportunities are there for people who want to make a difference."

Social Enterprise Summer Fellowships in Africa

"What We Need Most Is the Will to Make Changes"

HBS Social Enterprise Summer Fellowships provide financial support to MBA students who spend their summer working in nonprofit and public-sector organizations. This year, several students were in Africa, involved in a variety of projects. Olivier Velter (HBS '03) went to Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, working for the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a humanitarian relief organization that helps refugees around the world. "I am interested in working either in humanitarian relief or in economic development," Velter reports, "so this was an ideal experience in which to learn more." In Uganda, he developed a monitoring and evaluation system to help the IRC measure the impact of its programs; in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, he helped to produce training videos for new staff. While Velter was fascinated by the culture and the beauty of the African landscape, he also admits to feeling frustrated for the refugees who face so many difficult challenges. Yet he is still convinced that he will eventually work in this area. "For me, working in international economic development makes more sense because I am convinced that economic programs can have long-term, achievable impact for the local populations," he says. "Today, the world has the money, skills, and ideas to solve many problems.What we need most is the will to make changes."

When Bertrand Bodson (HBS '03) left to work on a project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, friends told him the experience would change his perception of the world. He now understands what they meant. Bodson and classmate Peter Tynan were asked by President Kabila to develop an action plan for the revitalization of the country's private sector. Several of their proposals have already resulted in tariff protection removal, ministerial decrees, project creation, and investment allocations. Bodson says that he found it rewarding to make these contributions, yet adds, "I sometimes felt powerless in front of so much poverty." At the same time, he found such challenges to be an impetus to work for improvement, noting, "The important thing is to have the courage to be bold and to take action."

Service Leadership Fellows Program

Providing a Bridge

The HBS Service Leadership Fellows Program (SLFP) was created in early 2002 to offer graduates the chance to experience leadership challenges in the social and public sector early in their careers. Both organizations and fellows are chosen through a selective process, and fellows receive grants to supplement their salaries from hiring organizations. As one of the first fellows, Mark Bearn (MBA '02) is working at ACHAP, the African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships. ACHAP is a fifty-fifty collaboration between the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and The Merck Company Foundation/Merck & Co., Inc. with the government of Botswana to help fight HIV/AIDS in this country, which has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world at 38.5 percent. Bearn's initial project involves developing a culturally sensitive leadership model for Botswana to use in the assessment and training of senior leaders in government, business, and civil society.

"It is a major challenge," Bearn explains, "as there are elements of Botswanan culture that translate well into best practices for fighting HIV/AIDS—community ethic, generosity, accountable leadership—while there are others that actively hinder that fight—especially the inferior role afforded to women and children." Bearn says that he was drawn to SLFP because it was an opportunity to use his management skills on an issue of great significance to Africa and the developing world, and because of the chance to take on a responsible public-sector role at an early stage in his career. "This provides me with a huge reservoir of experience, whether I decide to stay in the public sector or move for some years into the private sector," Bearn explains. "My long-term ambitions have always been in public service, and the fellowship has provided me with a perfect bridge into such a career."

Bringing the Challenges of Africa to the Classroom

As part of the required Social Enterprise course, HBS students study cases on Merck Global Health Initiatives, which deal with the complex issue of combating disease in Africa. Through video and written cases, students examine how Merck, led by Chairman, President, and CEO Raymond V. Gilmartin (MBA '68), created a drug donation program to combat river blindness disease in developing countries and is now formulating an approach to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa. The course encourages students to consider the social and economic value of Merck's efforts and to assess response to market failure, barriers and challenges in the partnership with NGOs, and measures of success.