24.08.09 - From Murrays to Mozambique

In 2007, after six years with Murray Consultants, I decided the time was right for me to spend a year working voluntarily in a developing country.  Having been lucky enough to work with many outstanding organizations in my career, I felt I had useful experience, and that it would be fascinating to see if the lessons I have learned from exceptional Irish businesses could be usefully applied in a development context.  I began the process with VSO, but 14 months after I first had the thought I ultimately arrived in Mozambique to do voluntary work with one of my clients, Kenmare Resources plc.  This meant moving from a country ranked 5th highest in the UN's Human Development Index, to one ranked 6th lowest.
 
Kenmare, an Irish company, has been exploring in Mozambique for over 20 years.  In the past four years they have been constructing the country's first titanium minerals mine in a very rural area.  Kenmare has been keenly aware of its responsibilities to the local area and three years ago established an independent organization—the Kenmare Moma Development Association—to assist the local community and to leverage off the opportunities and infrastructure the mine has created.  My job would be to coordinate the work of the various partner organizations and to develop the small business programme.
 
Northern Mozambique is particularly disadvantaged, and this coastal area is very remote.  Most of the people living in the seven villages around the mine, farm and fish on a subsistence level.  Until five years ago there was little to no cash.  Nine out of 10 people live on less than $2 a day.  Life expectancy is about 42 years of age.
 
There is no education above primary level, no health system, no public transport, no electricity, no piped water, no banks, and no telephone lines and though the nearest city is just 250km away, the journey can take a truck 18 hours because the road is so poor. 
 
Just like at home, people's main preoccupations here are health, employment, education and transport, in that order.  It is hard to convey what it is like to have no access to a doctor for your family or even basic medications such as paracetemol.  Health expenditure per person in Mozambique is 1.5% of that in Ireland – and this in a country with a HIV prevalence of 16% and where malaria is endemic and severe, taking a terrible toll on adults and children.
 
So the obstacles to development in this area are numerous and their interaction is complex.
 
On the positive side, Kenmare has created employment and opportunities.  They are hard-working and highly motivated to change their circumstances.  With Kenmare's arrival, they have a new appreciation of the value of education, so the number of people in adult literacy classes has increased.  There is a strong community spirit.  Fundamentally, despite the differences of culture, education and experience, it never ceased to amaze me that people everywhere have the same basic needs and dreams. 

KMAD is involved in a wide range of activities, which have continued to expand since my departure. Projects are not ends in themselves, as well as having a direct benefit, they also build confidence and capabilities among the community. 

These include
Building and equipping schools
Primary medical care
Water wells
HIV/Aids awareness
Savings and credit programmes to teach people how to manage money
Small businesses—growing vegetables, tree nurseries, sewing, producing eggs, chickens, goats.
Sports tournaments
The egg project begun in August 2007 is one of the stand-out stories.  Most of the eggs sold in northern Mozambique come from Zimbabwe or Malawi.  Kenmare organized four families with 250 hens each, producing about 840 eggs a day—which were sold to the mine. 

 I worked with the farmers to develop other market channels.  Our first trip was to a town called Chalaua, 125km away.  We brought 1,680 eggs to sell them to a wholesaler and retailers.  As we packed the truck, the farmers—who have little education and no business experience—were careful to put the biggest, brownest eggs in the nicest trays on the top of the stacks.  They are instinctive marketers and business people.  It was wonderful to watch them do business—they even sold the 18 eggs I broke on the journey at a reduced price!
 
Once it was ascertained that there are further market opportunities in the province we believe this project can expand to become the major supplier of eggs in a 100km radius and already we have two more families with egg houses.
 
The model for the small businesses is to provide capital on a loan basis, technical support and training, a guaranteed market in sales to the mine and logistical support.  The loan approach ensures the businesses are economically viable—though it is a difficult concept for people who hardly used money a few years ago to grasp.  If you asked the egg farmers who owned their chickens, for many months they would respond that Kenmare owns the chickens—because Kenmare bought them.  They now understand that in fact they are the owners and the bosses, which is a great source of pride.  They are intent on building their business to pass it on to their children and grandchildren.  When business choices have to be made, we may work out the different scenarios—but they take the decisions. 
 
One of the things that excited me most about my work was to see how quickly business can introduce change and the value of a business perspective in development.   I got more use from my MBA in Topuito than I ever did in Dublin - setting up management accounts, carrying out feasibility studies and market research and so on.

 I was also surprised by the usefulness of my PR experience.  So much of the work depended on communication (though not easy when you are trying to learn Portuguese as you go!), building relationships of trust and respect, managing expectations, facilitating and encouraging community participation, negotiation, reporting back to stakeholders and donors, strengthening alliances and partnerships – all activities I have performed for clients in Ireland.  It was fantastic to take a CSR plan - and then work with the community to implement it, learning from the failures as well as the successes. 
 
It was not easy—I have learned a new respect for the importance of logistics.  Getting materials was a constant challenge.  When I need to talk to someone, I had to leave the office and drive down non-existent roads to find them—and if they need to talk to me they may have to walk 10km in 35 degrees.  Many people cannot read or write and not everyone speaks Portuguese.   On the positive side, I quickly grew accustomed to holding business meetings sitting on the ground with hordes of children and babies also in attendance. 
 
For anyone even vaguely considering working in developing countries, I would urge them to just get on and do it.  Business skills and experience are immensely valuable.  The help Africa needs is not to build houses — there is no shortage of labour here, but rather to help people learn how to plan, manage, budget and evaluate, to give them business ideas and skills and support them in execution.
 
In return, living and working in a developing country gives a completely new perspective on the world and the sharp edge of globalisation.  It refreshes your thinking and forces you to become more innovative, flexible and creative in a way that no amount of 'away days' can achieve.  It is a great privilege to have the opportunity to help people to help themselves and change their lives for the better.  It is also great fun.

People always ask if the experience changed me – I’m not sure that it did, or if so, how.  While I miss the work and Mozambique terribly, it was good to return to Murray Consultants.   I left KMAD in the very capable hands of Kenmare and Regina Macuacua, a Mozambican woman who previously worked for one of the UN Millennium Villages in Mozambique, so I am still in contact and visited again in March 2009.  It is fantastic to see the progress being made – even though there is still so very far to go.

Elizabeth Headon, Account Director