Dragons Den in Acholi Quarters

Today was Dragon’s Den day for the Lubanga Ber group in Acholi Quarters, and considering that it was the first time we have held the event there, and also that none of the participants have the slightest idea what the concept of Dragons Den is, it really did go pretty well!

I’ve been involved in two Dragon’s Den events in rural Mityana now, each of them run in conjunction with the Missing Link Microfinance programme that John Njendahayo has set up. They’ve both been very successful and have sparked a rise in innovative and well thought through ideas for income generating activities amongst the programme members.

The members of Lubanga Ber are also keen to start some new little businesses, to help boost their funds, but until now the ideas have tended to be replicas of businesses that they see around them, rather than anything new, or innovative.  So the hope was that by running the Dragon’s Den event with them, it would encourage some of that entrepreneurial spark to be fanned into life amongst them.

The criteria for their ideas were threefold – not harmful to the environment, beneficial to the community, and new (or at least showing a different approach to an existing business that would give it some clear added value).

Last week, John and myself had the task of sifting through the 20+ ideas that had been put forward, and shortlisting it down to 6 finalists. Some of that shortlisting was fairly easy – eg the 5 applicants all wanting to run a grocery shop - but getting rid of the final one or two harder.

However, we did it, and today the 6 shortlisted applicants had their opportunity to stand before ‘the dragons’ (aka me, Liz, Elizabeth, Simon and John) and pitch for the winning pot. That in itself is no mean feat  - and to see them each taking on that task, and speaking in public, is testimony to how far this group have come with regard to feelings of empowerment and self-belief.

We heard from Alice (stationery business), Florence (egg-selling, which morphed into a general store), Apio (poultry farming), John (carpentry), Matilda (tailoring) and Harriet (mushroom growing).

All very good ideas, and all had their pros and cons, which fed into the deliberations. But a decision was reached, and I had the joy of declaring the winner of the Acholi Quarters Dragon’s Den 2018 to be ………drum roll……………… Alice Akwero and her stationery business !!!! JJJ

The size of the pot and the amount she was asking for didn’t quite match, so Alice needs to rethink a bit and adjust her budget accordingly, but we all felt that her business idea was the one that most fulfilled the criteria, and has potential to succeed.

So, congratulations to Alice and good luck as she embarks on her new business, well done to all the short-listed participants for their presentations today, and a big thank you to those who donated towards ‘the pot’.

And I look forward to connecting with Alice over the next few months as she gets started, to see how she is getting on.