From Garments to Nonu Juice
© International Trade Centre, International Trade Forum
- Issue 1/2001
Twenty successful entrepreneurs from LDCs were invited to ITC's
and the Government of Norway's Business Sector Round Table,
organized at the request of UNCTAD during the Third United Nations
Conference on the Least Developed Countries (Brussels, May 2001).
The aim was to help trade development professionals who want to
turn these individual successes into a more general occurrence.
"It became clear [during the meeting] that a new generation of
LDC entrepreneur/exporter was emerging, characterized by an
entrepreneurial daring to venture into new fields and by dedication
to quality and customer satisfaction." noted ITC's Executive
Director, J. Denis Bélisle.
"Models of perseverance and long-term commitment to their
businesses, this new generation believes in its workers and gives
attention to building their skills and sharing the fruits of
success with them. It is keenly sensitive to social goals and to
the importance of strategic partnerships, networking and linking up
with the rest of the economy."
This mix of entrepreneurial daring, social sensitivity and
perseverance can be found in many other successful entrepreneurs we
identified in LDCs. Each of their stories has a lesson in turning
opportunities into commercial deals. Here are some of them:
-Fortuna Apparels, Bangladesh:
exploiting a dynamic market
-APGF, Burkina Faso: promoting
women
-ID Art Mony, Madagascar: artisanal
products with a special touch
-The Coconut Residence, The Gambia:
finding a niche in five-star luxury
-SAR and Co., Bangladesh: taking a
risk to move up the value chain
-Manda, Madagascar: staying
competitive against the multinationals
-Galerie Indigo, Mali: West African
artisans find an international outlet
-Dipag, Guinea: targeting the
'natural' market
-Cotriex, Burundi: exporting
agricultural products from a country in crisis
-Tiviski, Mauritania: creating a niche
in camel milk and cheese
-Cheetah Paprika, Zambia: foreign
investment turns comparative advantage into competitive
advantage
-Meskel Flowers, Ethiopia: exporting
cut flowers against competition
-Nonu, Samoa: adding value through new
products
-Frager, Haiti: shortening the perfume
chain to become world number one