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Saturday, January 21, 2012

Today’s main event is a meeting between Africans and Minnesotans and may or may not take place before or after 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. This is GMT, which normally indicates time along the Prime Meridian that passes through Greenwich, England, six hours in advance of the Central Time Zone in the USA, but today it refers to Ghana Maybe Time.

While waiting, Doug, Eddie and Greg decide to explore the Accra Mall, one of many new shopping malls that have come to life since Doug’s last visit in 2007. Wow! What has happened in this country? The Accra Mall looks and feels every bit as up-scale as Ridgedale with lots of shiny stainless steel and glass plus the ever present food court. Prices here are actually better than some other places so purchases are made.
The food court is bordered by a children’s play land complete with the inflatables seen at certain Fall Festivals in Minnesota, with the added feature of recorded music and a train running on a track around the perimeter. Home on the Range is heard playing over and over, but buffalo is not an item on the fast food menu at the food court… Star Beer is, however.

After lunch we head back to the ground floor “convention center” and meet Sam at our door. Philomina is called and the meeting begins.

E-quip Africa in Ghana: Business Ideas

If E-quip Africa (EQA) is to continue, then support in Ghana is needed because clearing customs and distributing items from a container varies according to its contents and destinations and has always been accompanied by problems and difficulties. Trying to manage this fairly and efficiently from Minnesota is an impossible task. Becoming an approved NGO in Ghana is a goal which would help us with this process as well as handling and processing requests of assistance from needy NGOs and schools in Ghana.

EQA since its beginning has operated with no paid employees, rather all those working toward our mission did so voluntarily without compensation, except in the case of Doug and Greg’s air fare in January, 2012. For various reasons this will need to change if we are to continue operations. So how can income be generated in Ghana to sustain paid positions and can an NGO in this country make a profit to sustain itself?

After Philomina sketched out three avenues of approach for the future, the obvious choice is to keep E-quip Africa separate from this new effort to earn a sustainable income. It is a delicate dance for an NGO in Ghana to maintain that tax-free status while earning money and while it is often done in the USA, here the perception would be that we are simply a for profit company trying to evade taxes. Let’s not even use the word E-quip or Africa in the new venture.

[I apologize for the collapse of outlining below--it looked correct in Word, but the formatting was lost when brought into this Drupal environment. But you'll get the idea anyway I think!]

How could income be generated?
1. Items can be sold:
• Let’s say 400 computers are shipped. 200 could be sold and 200 could be donated
• A different source of used computers needs to be found if numbers like this become the norm
• The same ideas could be applied to computer components sold separately
a) Mice
b) Keyboards
c) Flat screen monitors
• Crayola brand crayons are in demand as Chinese ones are not of high quality
• Perhaps writing paper could be sold?
• Other items to generate income?
a) –
b) –
• Price comparisons need to be made between purchase here and in the USA.

2. Refurbishing service
a. Train an individual or group to do this including Francis Abaidoo
b. Trainers are Greg, Sam
c. Supply them with tools, parts, memory, boards, what have you
d. Provide a location
i. Mankessim (Abaidoo)
ii. Accra (Sam’s garage?)
e. Promotion/advertising of services rendered by this new organization
i. NGOs and schools are notified of service when equipment is donated
1. If we donate the original computer then it must be returned when not working either for repair or recycling
2. If recycled, then it will be replaced with another machine
3. If the original machine was purchased from our new company, it may be returned also, for proper disposal
4. The purchase agreement could contain a clause requiring return when defunct to receive a rebate
f. –
g. –

3. Recycling service
a. Develop the process in Ghana
b. Find sources of material in addition to our own
c. Collect items to be recycled
d. Train an individual or group to collect and process
e. Find sales outlets for materials collected
i. Sell circuit boards, metal, plastic, wiring to local firms, if any
ii. Ship to another country possibly through the Takoradi harbor
f. Some processes are not economically workable in the USA, but might be here in Ghana
g. –
h. –

4. Grant seeking
a. Computer manufacturers
b. Environmental organizations
c. USAID
d. British Consulate
e. –
f. –

These ideas and others were discussed in the two to three hour meeting and at the close we have a handshake agreement to make this happen. Greg and Sam create the new company for profit and Doug handles E-quip Africa as an NGO in Ghana and a 501 (c) (3) in the USA. Roles were discussed for Eddie and Francis Abaidoo as well.

Our hosts are out to a surprise birthday party so Eddie, Greg and I go out to eat at Captain Hooks. The restaurant is neater than the one in Takoradi and is feeding a small group of people with lots of obroni present. We share the Captain’s Platter, a meal of selected sea food for three. Present on the platter are shrimp, tilapia, crab, octopus, tuna and other unidentified fish. The prices are high here and the food not up to Philomena’s quality back home. We walk past the growling Rottweiler’s and catch a cab home.