'Making markets work for enterprise in Africa' - training programme:- 7-12 March 2010

How can governments and development agencies stimulate enterprise competitiveness and growth?

It is increasingly recognised that:
▪Improving the competitiveness of enterprises in urban and rural environments is essential for pro-poor growth
▪Effectively functioning market systems - for goods and services - are critical to enterprise competitiveness
▪The potential of market systems to catalyse enterprise growth is often constrained by lack of information, skills, attitudes and rules
▪A key challenge for governments and agencies is to address these constraints and harness the potential of markets to bring about large scale and lasting impact

So, what should governments and development agencies do?

This training programme aims to provide answers to this question. The market development approach  focuses on how publicly-funded agencies can use their resources to leverage the dynamism of markets - for example in business and financial services - to achieve greater, more systemic impact.

Training for decision-makers, managers and specialists in Africa

Including senior staff from government departments and agencies, funders, not-for-profit organisations, consulting firms, universities and research oganisations. The programme will be most relevant to staff in a position to influence the design, management and co-ordination of their organisations' activities.

The Programme will provide participants with a thorough understanding of the market development approach, including:

▪The rationale for the approach and why it is important in Africa
▪Market systems and how to identify systemic constraints to their development
▪The roles of different players - such as governments, not-for-profits, the private sector - and how to find strategic and complementary roles in promoting enterprise competitiveness
▪The central importance and meaning of sustainability and how to design interventions for significant and lasting impact
▪Frameworks and tools for taking a facilitative approach to implementation and how to work effectively with market players
▪Approaches to monitoring and evaluating market change and how to manage information to track progress towards project goals

The  programme's  approach and materials will marry conceptual rigour with a strong practical orientation. A range of learning approaches will be used including lectures, case studies, group work and structured discussions. Throughout, the programme will seek to draw on the collective experience of participants to ensure that learning is grounded in operational realities.