TEDGlobal 2017, Arusha, Tanzania The Hidden Opportunities in the Informal Economy Lecture on Technology and Inequality, BankInter Foundation, Madrid, Spain, November 2016 Transcript Future Trends Forum, BankInter Foundation, Spain, June 2016 African Development Bank Innovation Weekend, Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire, October 2015 How Africa is Challenging Marketing […]
For an American startup, we crafted a market entry strategy for a digital payments solution. The Problem: Little or no research has been conducted to measure Nigeria’s informal cross border payment flows – whether by merchants and traders, or by economic migrants from neighbouring countries. Official statistics capture only the formal economy, rendering a skewed […]
For a British startup we designed a reputation ranking system based on a payment gateway Social media platforms such as Facebook Groups and WhatsApp are rapidly emerging as informal marketplaces in African markets such as Nigeria and Kenya. Expanding the conventional definition of e-commerce, these enterprising merchants engage and build communities of followers who are […]
For a Finnish startup, we designed a business productivity tool embedded in a marketplace app The Problem: Traders in the informal markets were dependent on handwritten sales logs, and their own memory to track inventory and sales data, often bypassing the effort to calculate their cash flow patterns and profitability. At the same time, there […]
Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA) was established with the aim of growing sustainable, inclusive prosperity in East Africa through trade. They believe that this will require significant investments in working to expand, and potentially formalise, informal trade. We were requested to deliver insights to support the design of their second phase of operations, viz. To […]
We identify opportunity spaces and define new products and services that can add value and enhance lives, not simply plug the gaps of unmet needs. Needs and wants are so many that every decision to spend money is a trade off on the risks of a return of maximum value. How and where can we […]
We were tasked to assess the market and value the opportunity space for our client Village Telco, a social enterprise start up whose mission is to enable affordable access to voice and data communications in challenging environments. Since their intended target audience was to be cyber cafes (internet cafes) and this industry is very much […]
In Autumn 2012, The Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the government of The Netherlands commissioned Emerging Futures Lab to explore, through dialogue, the current day process, challenges, and opportunities which lead to the design of international sustainable development programmes. Subsequent work throughout 2013 provided us with the unique experience […]
The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs contribute to PPPs with the intent of proliferating sustainable agricultural practices with farmers in developing countries, thus promoting sustainable and equitable growth. In search for opportunities to enhance the scale and spread of such practices, we were requested by both Ministries to conduct […]
The African consumer market is unique and challenging. Informal markets where transactions are primarily in cash dominate the landscape. Connected consumers demand the best in the world yet infrastructural challenges and lack of market services create a vacuum of information. Observing user needs for product and service design is not enough, the entire ecosystem must […]
