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Female Heroes Interview: Estelle Akofio-Sowah
Every week we will be publishing an interview with one of our female internet heroes in order for you to MEET interesting women. READ about their WORK, THINK about how they PLAY the internet industry and see how you MATCH them. Be inspired! thenextwomen is proud to feature African Internet Hero Estelle Akofio-Sowah this week.
‘I live in a world where you cannot take anything for granted. What is technology when your toilets are not flushing and you have customers needing running water. What is technology then?’ says Estelle Akofio-Sowah, Managing Director of business centre Busy in Ghana.
Established in 2001, BusyInternet is the largest privately-owned and operated ICT centre in Africa. Through Busy, Estelle tries to encourage both business and social development.
BusyInternet has been hailed as a promising model for Africa by combining internet access, business support services, office space, training and business incubation in a single facility.
Estelle gave thenextwomen insight into the internet sector in Ghana and how she is encouraging social development and business growth through it, while reminding us of the luxurious position people are in the Western world, to have the time and infrastructure to use the internet to the fullest.
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Tell me a little bit about yourself?
My mom is from Shetland, my dad is from Ghana. So I am mixed race, half Ghanaian, half Scottish. My parents met in Edinburgh, where my dad was studying. So I was born in Edinburgh, moved to Ghana when I was six months old, grew up and lived there until I was 18. Then went to University in Brighton, Sussex University, where I did economics and development studies. After studies I wanted to go back to Ghana. Temping in London will probably make anybody want to go back. So I worked for six months so I could get a ticket back to Ghana
I first worked for an NGO in the development sector, and very quickly got frustrated with development in that area and with the effect the donor world has on our development. A lot of money gets wasted on project offices, cars, foreign consultants salaries and so on. I was frustrated with that and seeing how Ghanaians were struggling with basic needs. So much funding really does not trickle down to the people who it has to impact. So I realised I wanted to be in the private sector, where there is so much freedom to have a direct impact on people. Then I came across Busyinternet, or Busy came across me.
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What activities does busy offer?
BusyInternet seeks to promote the social and economic development of Ghana through the use of ICT. By providing large enabling facilities, BusyInternet brings together People, Resources and Opportunities.
With the largest number of flat screens, the fastest connectivity, personalized data storage and professional staff, our café’s and digital copycentre’s enjoy an unrivaled position in the market. We put an emphasis on providing complete customer satisfaction and are constantly improving our services by keeping up to date on current trends and developing technologies.
With outstanding products and services, our ISP distinguishes itself in the market as an excellent, customer focused provider. Our 24 hour HelpDesk offers personal and professional support for all our users needs.
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How did you get involved with Busy?
Busy was setup in 2001, and I met them when they were recruiting. I had just had my first son,
I joined busy on a part-time basis. I was in charge of their incubation services, training and community outreach programs. We have various platforms where we promote ICT as a tool to enhance your life or your business. We also ran various health programs, focusing amongst others on HIV. Then one day the founder said he was looking for a managing director, and if I could recommend anyone. So I went back to my family for consultations, and I knew the only thing I could go back with was myself and so that’s just what I did! Seven years later I am still here as the managing director and enjoying every minute of what we do.
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Who are the founders?
The Founder is Mark Davies, a Welsh-American entrepreneur. He has been in the internet business for a while, He made his wealth with citysearch, which was an online site for tickets and so on, during the dotcom boom. He sold that and was looking for new exciting areas to move into. During his travels through Africa and Ghana, he saw the small cybercafés, a fairly young group of people with a keen interest in the internet and the poor infrastructure and resources in Ghana. He decided to set up a non- profit business where people can grow their business, through the internet. But he could not get funding for it, so then developed the for profit model, which is what we are running now.
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Where do you see your company in 3-5 years?
We intend to expand. We just finished opening another branch and we have another branch in the pipeline. Ghana’s information and knowledge economy is growing fast and we intend to be a key part of it.
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How would you characterise the internet sector in Ghana?
The internet sector is an interesting sector in the developing world. It is sector which was typically monopolised by the government, the incumbent, and so it has been a very restricted sector. It still is a very challenged sector in terms of access to infrastructure, regulations and licensing. The mobile sector has bloomed over the last few years and it is rapidly encroaching into our data sector. In Ghana, we have small local companies, competing against large international companies and unfortunately our governments do not have structures in place to ensure that these companies do not just kill the local business instead of partnering with them and using and building on the resources and local knowledge.
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How do you think it will develop?
We live in a world where most days we do not know where we will be the next day. When you come to Ghana you’ll here people say, ‘by God’s grace we are here”.
People are not overnight going to have their own computers, their own electricity, and their own internet access in their homes or offices. And so a centre like Busy will always be needed. In Accra people have increasing access to the internet. It might just be that we move to the newer growing cities. We are very significant in the lives of the communities around us. I am confident that BusyInternet will be around long into the future but we might not be around in the same form. Technology will change as well.
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How do you think your business is impacting Ghanaians?
One of the core services is a cybercafé, a place where, people can come, do their work and network. We are open seven days a week, 24 hours. People virtually live here. Some people keep in touch with family or run their business. For small companies and entrepreneurs, a key benefit is being able to save their files on our server. Then their colleague can come and look at it later, edit it, print it out. It is all about providing shared services and resources. People and businesses come up to me all the time saying how grateful they are to Busy for enabling them to find old friends, or launch an online business, or enabling them to communicate with suppliers. We have had many companies hosted within our incubator which have successfully grown as a result of our shared services and networks. We take away the operational challenge and allow them to focus on their core business.
I know as well, internationally we have been a great voice even for our government.
We have had government ministers come back to me saying how proud they feel when they travel and other African government leaders came up saying they have heard about Busy and would love to have a centre like that in their country.
On a personal note, I never realised when I started Busy, the potential that I could have to motivate other people and women in particular. I have, without knowing it or planning it, become a role-model, I have stood up in front of thousands of people and mentored them how to live their life to the max. I never thought I would be doing that. Even with this interview, I hope I will have a positive impact on women of different races, also struggling with the challenges of their lives.
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This programme is dubbed an example for African economies- do you agree with that and why/why not?
I think a centre like this should be in every large city in the developing world. I am part of a global incubator network, infoDev (World Bank), through which I meet people from South-America, Eastern Europe, India. Every one agrees that a centre like BusyInternet is key to their countries development.
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How would you characterize Ghanaian business and start-up culture?
Our blessing is that Ghanaians are very peaceful, although I wish we could be a bit feistier, with a bit more fighting spirit, a bit more pushy and demanding. Over the last few years, I have participated in annual studies that rate countries in terms of speed and ease with which you can set up a business. Ghana is not doing too badly. The time it takes to register and establish a company has improved significantly. It is also fairly straight forward for foreign investors and companies wanting to come and set up in Ghana.
But the challenge is that you are in an environment that is not stable, primarily because infrastructure does not exist. Additionally, we are coming from, if you go far back, a colonial regime, where people were not encouraged to think creatively or independently. Then we went very quickly to a military regime for ten years, where again fear was used to suppress independent thinking. The public sector was the largest employer and so many children grew up with parents going to work but not really pushed to work hard. Now the young people are further challenged as our education system is not as strong as it used to be. With the onset of the information society, the youth want to move quickly. When you have not given them the right education, and the right morals, you have a huge challenge ahead of us.
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What explains you success?
I had the luxury of having two parents that told me I am special. That is not in an arrogant way, but in a realistic way. That is what guides me and pushes me. I try to live by the phrase “the way I do anything, is the way I do everything”.
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Does that explain your success, the belief in yourself?
Yes, otherwise I would not have said to founder of Busy, ‘I have no experience but I am the woman you need. I am your managing director.’ And I know he has never regretted it.
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How is your work/life balance?
It is a real challenge; I battle with the time I have to spend with my family. There is that balance that you need to find. And there is the reality when my kids are sick, all else stops and I have to make them well. Whereas Dad will still go to work, but I will drop everything if they are sick! Its tough but I enjoy it and it is possible.
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What is a female entrepreneur to you?
I think women are naturally smart and have intuition to make the right decision in situations and people. I think a woman naturally has the ability to multi-task. If women realised that, probably more women would go into business. Once you can run a family, once you can manage a husband, nothing can stop you. I think women need to recognise the additional challenges they will face simply by being a woman, but they should not be overwhelmed by that. I don’t wake up every day and think about them, otherwise would never be able to leave the house! Also, it can be an advantage, you just have to realise what the people opposite you will be assuming about you because you are a woman, that makes you more powerful. You get to use the element of surprise on your unsuspecting opponents.
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What advise would you give to young aspiring women?
So for female entrepreneurs I always say, you have to wake up each day and be strong. And bold. You have to know you are beautiful from the inside out. And you have to smile. I always talk about the power of the smile, use it to change your day and others around you.
FACTBOX:
What does web 2.0 mean to you?
I did research on what web 2. 0 means for this interview. Until this morning I am sorry to say it meant absolutely nothing to me. I asked a few people around me, but it was not significant to them either. What I did find on the internet, did not seem very significant to my every day world and use of technology.
In Ghana we don’t have time for blogs and so on yet. We are still living in a world where we are battling to have electricity, running water, to have roads, schools and healthcare. Who has time to go to chat on a site?
What networks are you part of?
I am part of loads of networks, but I have little time to contribute them. I look with envy to people who have the luxury that their lives run smoothly to have that time. I live in a world where you cannot take anything for granted. What is technology when your toilets are not flushing and you have customers needing running water?
We have elections coming up and we are hoping the elections will happen smoothly again, that nobody is going to wake up overnight and just turn our lives upside down with some political upheaval. We hope the elections will be democratic, that’s the world we live in.
And that the person coming in will take our country forward, and not be corrupt and use money and resources and laws wrongfully.What do you know about web technology?
I am not a technology person myself. I have a technical team for that. Obviously I have learned a lot about technology running Busy, but I am a people person. At Busy, we have about a thousand people coming in every day and a constantly growing customer base. My strength is in human relations, whether in my team or in the wider community. I am very active in a lot of the ICT associations, and pushing for the right legislation, policy, and infrastructure environment. That is really my focus. In fact, my family often laugh about me because I am quite bad on the computer. I can type really quickly and push out emails, but put a computer in front of me and you’d be surprised how confused I am with it. But I absolutely know how to run my business using technology, and that is the angle I run it from.
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7 Responses to “Female Heroes Interview: Estelle Akofio-Sowah”
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Yes, internet gives the so many opportunities and resource to everyone. Now a days every person is very busy with their works so they utilize the internet accesses for every thing.
[...] was a few months ago that Female Internet Hero Estelle Akofio-Sowah reminded thenextwomen of the luxurious position people are in the Western world, to have the time and infrastructure to [...]
[...] and a showcase for succesful African Businesses. She gets this title for reminding us of the luxurious position people are in the Western world, to have the time and infrastructure to use the internet to the [...]
HI MADAM I AM GLAD TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH IMPACT YOU HAVE HAD ON MY WHOLE LIFE I WANT YOU TO KEEP ON WITH THE TREMENDEUOS WRK YOU HAVE STARTED. THAK YOU
i am mechanical engineering student and watched you on THANK GOD ITS FRIDAY, by KSM. i want to say that i am proud of your acievements and hope to soar high as you have. i wish you all the best.
I must say am greatly inspired. I like your personality, especially after listening to you in person at the Woman 2.1 Summit. You pose a challenge to young women of our generation. Keep it up.
people like you are the ones that re-ignite hope in us the future generation .
At the moment there seem to be no light at the end of the tunnel but hope and hardwork is that we have left . congratulations and more grease to your elbows