THE convergence of financial markets within the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) is gaining momentum following a recent endorsement by finance ministers from the 15 member-state region, head of the Sadc committee of central bank governors secretariat Mshiyeni Belle said in an interview this week.
Africa’s economy could grow and attain “first world status” if it sustains a two per cent annual growth rate over the next three decades.
In a new book titled: The fastest billion – The Story Behind Africa’s Economic Revolution, the Renaissance Group outlines the continent’s growth trajectory over 30 years.
Projections in the book indicate that Africa is already attracting more foreign investments than India and Bangladesh owing to a faster growth rate.
Companies seeking foreign audiences with their websites will want to either localize or internationalize their site, or provide a mixture of both processes. Forrester Research notes that "visitors linger twice as long [on international sites] as they do at English-only web sites; business buyers are three times more likely to buy if addressed in their own language; and customer services costs drop when instructions are displayed in the user's language."
The Internet’s global reach has made possible a cost-effective means for marketing products and services overseas. Companies that establish a corporate web site, which publicizes their products and services, provide an electronic mechanism for safe and secure electronic transactions, features order tracking, and lists products’ technical specifications can easily apply electronic commerce to international marketing.
What do you do when you get to that crossroads in your firm's development, when you just don't know how to proceed? The answer may lie with business coaching. A good business coach can be a great source of motivation, expertise, accountability and all around wisdom for you and your business.
One of the biggest problems that faces entrepreneurs is staying motivated after the heady days of getting a startup going. Once the startup is up and running, product is going out the door, employees are hired and customers are fairly stable, the business enters a phase of consolidation. Other employees may begin to make major decisions. Accounting, human resources, taxes, regulations, licensing etc may become the major subjects of day to day responsibilities for you as the founding entrepreneur.
Growing your business in tough economic times can seem like a truly daunting task. But you don't have to sit back and take what the poor economic environment is dishing out. Here are some tips on growing even in down times. The trick to achieveing success is focusing on the following three aspects of your business.
Ed: this article is the first in a series examining prospects for Africa based business expansion for small and medium sized businesses.
Africa's economic prospects have rarely looked so good. The continent as a whole has had some of the world's highest economic growth rates since 2000 and is projected to be the fastest growing region of the world over the next five years with an average GDP growth rate above 6%.
Zambia is a politically stable, multi-party democracy, rich in natural resources. Zambia has a population of approximately 13 million with a growing middle class, particularly in urban areas. Its relatively open economy has averaged more than six percent real GDP growth over the past eight years and was ranked one of the fastest growing economies in the world in a recent report by The Economist magazine.
If you are like most small business owners, you probably feel like marketing your business is chore. Something akin to getting a root canal. Many small businesses fail to thrive because their owners make nothing more than half hearted perfunctory efforts to market their business. So if you fall into this camp what can you do to create some marketing motivation on your part?
Two-way total trade between the United States and Ghana was valued at $1.9 billion in 2011, a 56 percent increase over 2010. U.S. exports to Ghana were valued at $1.2 billion, up from $963 million in 2010, and over the past five years exports of U.S. goods and services have increased over 186%.
