Doing Business in Africa

This course introduces frameworks and models for smart and focused investing and operations across sectors, nations, industries, and time frames in Africa.   Students will learn tools and skills to help navigate the business landscape of Africa in terms of selection of investments and markets, as well as in locally relevant (nation by nation and district by district) components of effective operating businesses.  

Africa is unlike any other emerging region in several regards:  It’s massive (land area greater than India plus China plus USA plus Western Europe); there are about 54 countries and almost as many visas; 40 or so currencies; and hundreds of languages.  There is little connectivity between nations and cities; institutions (governments, law, and banking) are weak; and the nations are poor.  Yet there are over a billion people in sub-Saharan Africa today, with the population expected to grow faster than in any other region on the planet. The continent is rapidly urbanizing. There is resource scarcity but also resource abundance.  

The course is organized around three themes that cut across all business sectors in Africa in ways that are different than in other emerging markets:   1) Market segmentation and selection including country, region, sector, and place in the supply chain; 2) Access to growth capital; and 3)  Technology to overcome barriers or to “leapfrog” in business expansion. 

The cases focus on five business sectors which have particular potential impact in Africa and particular appeal for HBS students:  1) Investing and Capital Markets; 2) Infrastructure Finance and Delivery (including PPPs as well as urbanization); 3) Food and Agribusiness; 4) Manufacturing & Processing; and 5) Retail & Personal Services.    These are all areas which involve a) large amounts of capital b) managerial skill and c) job creation.