Entrepreneurship

By Robin Steedman

The film industry is a notoriously difficult place for women to make a living. Women still struggle to break through the ‘celluloid ceiling’ and make films on their own terms. In Nairobi, Kenya, however, they are flourishing. Why is this the case?

In my new book, Creative Hustling: Women Making and Distributing Films from Nairobi, I answer that question. 

I argue that women succeed in building careers in the film industry and making excellent cinema because they hustle.

Nairobi is not an easy place to be a filmmaker: for example, there is no meaningful state support for filmmaking and there is a very small domestic market where films can be screened and sold. Female filmmakers entrepreneurially navigate this precarious context, which is to say they hustle. 

A case in point of hustling is film producer Appie Matere producing fifty-six hour-long films for the South African TV company M-Net in a five-month period from a single location. As I say in the book, she described the process as follows:

It was so crazy because all the interiors had to be in this house for the films so that we can be able to work within the budget and within the timeframe […] we had to build sets here for all of them. So this room now … could be a restaurant, in another half an hour you come back and it’s a classroom. And the [handy men] are on standby waiting to paint or whatever it was. … It was crazy.

She succeeded in producing movies in a totally unconventional way. Not all projects made by female filmmakers in Nairobi are successful of course, but what is remarkable in their work is how open they were to experimentation, to making films across genres and formats to keep telling stories. 

They continually confronted problems, facing them in innovative ways. Such as when Jackie Lebo described her strategy of dealing with the pervasive film piracy in Nairobi as “leaning in” to piracy rather than trying to change it. She took a long-term view and tried to build a local audience through piracy in the hope this audience would one day turn into a paying market, and in the meantime, she could demonstrate having an audience when she applied for funding for her next production.

Making creative features films—such as famous films like Rafiki (directed by Wanuri Kahiu) and Saikati (directed by Anne Mungai)—is one aspect of the work these filmmakers do, and certainly the most high profile. But it isn’t the only aspect. I argue that understanding how filmmakers in Nairobi come to make these movies requires understanding the full scope of their work—from documentaries, to television, to commissioned and corporate work. Only when we consider this ecosystem in its entirety can we understand how it is that women have come to create such a vibrant industry in Nairobi. 

It is through their hustling work that women have created something remarkable. 

Creative Hustling is available open access from MIT Press: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262544832/creative-hustling/

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Robin Steedman is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Business and Development Studies (CBDS). Her research focuses on work, entrepreneurship, and hustling in filmmaking and other creative industries in Africa. Her current postdoctoral work is part of the major research project ‘Advancing Creative Industries for Development in Ghana’ (ACIG).

By Marcus M. Larsen

How do business models evolve in challenging institutional environments? With substantial growth opportunities offered by an expanding population, raising income levels and more household consumption, an increasing number of firms are being established in developing countries. However, market-supporting institutions such as reliable physical infrastructure and competitive regulation are often under-developed, preventing many of these firms from realizing their potential. For example, the World Bank’s Doing Business Index reports that several of the world’s most difficult places for businesses are in Africas. Another study found that as many as 9 out 10 Indian startups go bankrupt within their first 5 years. Understanding how new ventures design their business model successfully is therefore particularly important.

In a recently published article in Organization Science, Augustine Peprah, Claudio Giachetti, Tazeeb Rajwani and I explore how firms develop their business model through learning in environments with weak institutions. We conducted a case-based analysis of Jumia—an online retailing firm established in Nigeria in 2012—that aimed to emulate the success of the Amazon.com across several African countries. Jumia’s gross merchandise volume grew from nearly €35 million in 2013 to over €500 million in 2017. By the same time, it had expanded its operations into 11 different countries across Africa. Jumia navigated through initial obstacles with regards to trust, acceptability, and infrastructure in African e-commerce by creating a sustainable ecosystem of digital services and supporting infrastructure for an online and mobile marketplace.

Based on our analysis, we argue that ventures surrounded by considerable uncertainty will deliberately imitate the business models of successful firms. By imitating selected elements of the business models of other successful organizations (such as Amazon), firms can reduce the uncertainty of operating in weak institutional environments. However, because of the same institutional voids, the ventures’ intentional imitation will progressively be replaced by innovation. As managers gain experience and confidence, they start to modify the business model to accommodate for the specific environment in which they operate, and thereby create and extract further value. We propose a process model entitled “imitate-but-modify” that explains how business models evolve through four distinct phases (i.e., clarification, legitimacy, localization, and consolidation).

We believe our findings are useful for firms and managers in developing countries looking to scale up their business models from a start-up phase into a growth phase. Similar to others who have started to explore what constitutes successful strategies in Africa, we explain how weak institutional environments drive, but also impede successful imitation of business models designed for other contexts. As such, we offer insight into how entrepreneurs, teams and organizations should balance imitation and innovation, and also identify strategies to fill and replace market-hampering institutions.

By Søren Jeppesen

The official reactions to Covid-19 have (so far) not been doing much for sustainable development (apart from lower CO2 emissions from air travel). Despite concerned voices criticizing the limited attention to combating climate change (‘environmental sustainability’) in the longer run, little impact on policy makers has been registered.

If we focus on ‘social sustainability’ the picture is similar. Discussing the social side of sustainability is part and parcel of assessing the situation in the informal sector and among the estimated two billion people reliant on their livelihoods through the informal activities across the Globe. Sadly, the situation has shown that this group of people and their families have suffered from the imposed restrictions due to Covid-19 (see here).

While the negative impact on income and livelihoods probably is the most severe consequence of inability, lack of willingness (and in some cases maybe even sheer ignorance) among authorities, the events since March can also be viewed ‘an opportunity missed’ regarding (more) sustainable practices.”

The classical example is waste handling where informal workers (or scavengers) are involved in waste collection, sorting and identifying material for recycling and reuse. The Indian system where almost all component of waste are sorted and reused is well-known. But additional examples are found in areas like minimizing food waste and establishing social safety nets (Tucker and Anantharaman, 2020). Had governments appreciated the role of the informal sector and the activities undertaken, the period since March could have been used to change towards a ‘sustainability footprint’.

So, instead of using the (unfortunate) challenge to aim for positive change why have governments then been so keen to do the opposite and merely lockdown the informal sector (including denying poor people of their meagre livelihoods)? As Tucker and Anantharaman (2020) argue, it might be due to informal work being perceived as a ‘deficit’ (lack of contracts, lack of permits, lack of tax payment, lack of this and lack of that). International organisations like ILO have long been arguing in favor of ‘formalization of the informal’ (ILO, 2019). And not to romanticize the informal sector, nevertheless it is intriguing that this is and has not been a sector perceived as ‘creative, agile, flexible’ and all the buzz that the present glorification of the private sector and individual initiative otherwise has been marked by.

Now, we can’t change what have been the typical type of reactions to the Covid-19 situation across the globe, but we do note that we have increasing social challenges ahead due to rising poverty levels, the naïve, optimistic wish for the New Year is that attention will be placed on how to engage the informal sector and all its resources in the strive for a more sustainable development path. It will not only open up the Pandora’s box regarding new and valuable ways on dealing with the Global trajectories, but could provide avenues for the informal sector to be reckoned as ‘a contributor’ (instead of ‘a deficit’).

By Søren Jeppesen

Small – yet important and still responsible

One thing seems to be clear by now – that we are all challenged by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. This includes all enterprises, large as well as small firms. As states and individuals, also SMEs (Small and Medium-size Enterprises) need to figure out how to respond. SMEs constitute the vast majority of enterprises on the Globe, and their response to the current situation, including how they behave in terms of social responsibilities matter a lot. If jobs disappear, or wages are lowered and/or working conditions deteriorate, a large number of persons (employees) and families will be negatively affected. If environmental standards are lowered the nature and humans will be negatively affected.

The perception of what constitutes social responsibilities varies substantially across countries. As SMEs in different parts of the world face very different situations (see Spence et al. 2018), also in times of Covid-19, the responses will be very different. We already witness intense debates on what is the ‘appropriate way’ of reacting. Most SMEs have a less formalized way of operating compared to larger firms. While this is viewed as leading to being less socially responsible compared to large firms this type of organizing – not being so standardized – maybe is an advantage in an unknown situation like the one that we are witnessing right now. Agility, creativity and ability to make a decision fast could be an advantage right now like the Danish small firms that have adjusted their production to include critical health products show.

However, the examples are probably the exceptions rather than the rule as only a smaller section of the SMEs typically can be characterized like this. The majority of the SMEs are operating in more traditional, standardized ways and have a more limited range of responses as things stand right now.

In our part of the world, governments have implemented numerous support schemes trying to assist the private sector, including SMEs, in various ways. The Danish SME has various public-funded support packages and a highly formalized labour market cushioned by a number of social benefit programs to factor into the considerations. Hence, we can insist that an important part of managing continues to be keeping an eye on working conditions and the environmental impact. In other parts of the world like the developing countries, governments have so far done less and given the much more informal nature of the economies, SMEs are much harder effected.

The Ugandan SME is faced with no economic assistance and a complete lockdown of the society leading to a dramatically reduced – if not totally halted – operation and turnover. In addition, no social benefits exist to assist employees who are losing their job. So, the overarching topic concerns the socio-economic dimensions of how many SMEs that survive while retaining a good number of the staff – or on the more pessimistic side – how many that go down leaving scores of people unemployed and without an income affecting individuals as well as tons of families.

What can we then expect in terms of social responsibilities in such a situation? Given that some developing country SMEs are characterized as having ‘family-like culture’, we would expect such enterprises to retain the employees (Tran and Jeppesen, 2016). Even though the SMEs retain the employees, owners and managers personally have to handle the insecurity that accompanies the situation as well as relating to the concerns among the employees.

The family-like type of organization could ensure that employees are kept and not fired. Still, we know that a number of SMEs pay little if any wages in times of limited production. Hence, having a job with no income does not make a difference right now.

Small enterprises in developing countries are also praised for their community engagement in taking up activities ensuring women (Langevang et al, 2015) or young people income. The localized response may assist in various ways of helping citizens in dire need. Religion and which church that you are a member of play a role. Some churches, as well as the wealthier members (and among these SME owners and managers), come forward to assist their congregation and the less well-off families in times of need. 

We need to wait for the answer to whether and to what extent Covid-19 will be marked by resilience and a protective and more caring (social) response by SMEs – or rather by the tough reality of downsizing and/or closing down with numerous dire consequences.

References

Langevang, T., Gough, K. V., Yankson, P. W., Owusu, G., & Osei, R. (2015). Bounded entrepreneurial vitality: The mixed embeddedness of female entrepreneurship. Economic Geography, 91(4), 449-473.

Spence, Laura J., Jedrzej George Frynas, Judy N. Muthuri, Jyoti Navaret, 2018. Research Handbook on Small Business Social Responsibility: Global Perspectives. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Tran, Angie Ngoc & Søren Jeppesen. 2016. SMEs in Their Own Right: The Views of Managers and Workers in Vietnamese Textiles, Garment, and Footwear Companies. Journal of Business Ethics, 137(3), 589-608

By Amanda Haarman

The Government of Ghana has declared 2019 the Year of Return. It is an open invitation to the diaspora to visit Ghana and set foot on the soil of their ancestors. With a fully-fledged marketing campaign well underway and busloads of heritage tourists travelling through the country, it leads to wonder, why does Ghana encourage its diaspora to come home, why now? And is Ghana ready?

This year marks the commemoration of 400 years since the first slave ship arrived at the shores of Jamestown Louisiana. With the launch of “The Year of Return, Ghana 2019” campaign, the President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, sends out an open invitation to the diaspora to seek their ancestral roots in Ghana. Lots of people in the diaspora are already playing with the thought of one day returning to Africa. By organizing the Year of Return, “the government is giving them a deadline” – a recently relocated returnee from New York told me. “2019 is the year, this is the year. It is pulling them quicker than they would have come”.

Ghana finds itself approaching a beyond-aid era. Ever since the country formally reached lower middle-income level in 2010 as per World Bank standards, it faces the prospect of reduced foreign aid from traditional donors such as Denmark that are phasing development assistance to Ghana. In search of new ways to grow the economy and as part of a wider beyond-aid agenda, Ghana sets its hopes on the Diaspora.

With the campaign in full swing while I was doing field research for my PhD on relocated first- and second-generation Ghanaians in Accra’s creative arts scene, I took the opportunity to ask about their thoughts on the campaign.

Although my PhD research is not about the Year of Return or heritage tourism, it was hard to miss the campaign. The Year of Return has a strong media presence and marketing material can be found across the city where giant billboards are lined up in the mayor streets of Accra. Even international media such as CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera and China Daily have picked up on the campaign. I would not say that the Year of Return is the talk of the town, but it is certainly a hotly debated topic in the community of Ghanaian returnees that I study.

Just between now and the end of the year, there are an impressive number of 27 official events on the calendar of the Year of Return. December is traditionally the busy season when the diaspora and black “celebs” come to Accra for vacation, but this December will go through the roof. To some extent it is a “relabeling, repackaging” – one returnee told me. Panafest, Afrochella, and the bespoke graffiti street art festival Chale Wote were already attracting a fair share of diaspora visitors before the government launched the campaign. Still, Accra looks forward to an exciting list of events as the year comes to an end.

With a jam-packed event calendar and thousands of heritage tourists entering the country, I couldn’t help but wonder, is Ghana ready?

Naturally, there are also concerns. In fact, the campaign is received with great caution by some of the people that spoke to. They see the Year of Return as great publicity for Ghana, but this initial positive reactions is followed by a long list of BUTs. But it is “irresponsible”, but Ghana is “unprepared”, but “who benefits”, but “what will happen in 2020?”.

In a recent episode of Diaspora Weekly, the president of Ahaspora (the local returnee association) commented on Ghana’s preparedness for the Year of Return. For her, “putting Ghana on the map” is a great idea, although admittingly, she adds that it is still “rough around the edges”. She fears that Ghana cannot live up to the high expectations of American tourists, referring to missing basic amenities like “clean toilets” and offering the “customer service” they are used to. Guesthouses are sparse and there are few tourist attractions beyond Mole National Park, Kakum National Park and the slave castles in Cape Coast and Elmina. “It is like throwing a party, but you haven’t cleaned your home” – the TV host adds. Whether it is down to Ghana missing the vital infrastructure, or to unrealistic expectation from heritage tourists, some challenges will surely follow their arrival.

Another much-heard critique is the campaign’s paucity on healing. African American and Afro-Caribbean slave descendants travel to Ghana to connect to the land of their ancestors. A lady complained, “What are we doing to heal them? It’s not enough to put them in a bus, show them the dungeons, let them cry a bit and then say, ‘thank you, have a good life’. No! Where is the healing? There are many hundreds of years of separation, there is hurt, there is betrayal. And you think ‘oh, bring your money’. No, it does not work like that”. Without the necessary support structures, it is “irresponsible” to invite them home – she adds. As the government of Ghana hopes to boost tourism, the Year of Return attracts a type of homecoming that – some would argue – is probably better described as pilgrimage.

As Accra prepares for the December craze, the big questions that seems to puzzle everyone is, “What happens in 2020?” What are the long-term effects of the Year of Return? And who benefits? Owners of hotels, restaurants, and retail shops across Accra are rubbing their hands with glee at the prospects of the December arrivals. Likewise, for many of the Ghanaian returnees that I study, the Year of Return is a commercial opportunity. However, as a recent article warns, caution is needed. The influx of tourists could trigger inflation and large investments in the local tourism industry risks crowding out domestic firms. Ghana’s economy is sure to benefit from the Year of Return, but as always, some will benefit more than others.

Ancestral return, heritage tourism, or pilgrimage – however you wish to call the Year of Return tourism – is an important mechanism for the Government of Ghana to face a future beyond aid. The online campaign presenting Ghana and Accra from its most flattering angle, makes it hard not to get carried away with the beautiful imagery and stories of return. Yet, some seriously question Ghana’s preparedness for heritage tourism at this scale. By launching the Year of Return, Ghana has set the tone and perhaps even a future trend on the continent. As more and more African nations reach lower middle-income status and potentially face a future beyond aid (in 2020 alone, Senegal and Zimbabwe will reach middle-income status), more might pursue the diaspora option. The hope is that Ghana becomes a reference for fostering inclusive ancestral return; not just welcoming tourists with open arms, but truly embracing the diaspora that comes home.