Talking Point: Africa in prime position for 'green economy'?

UN reports [see comments section for discussion points!]:

Africa is well poised to take advantage of a host of opportunities on the continent for building a ‘green economy,’ one that generates decent jobs in an environmentally sustainable way, a senior United Nations official said today.

“This continent is in many ways the envy of the 21st century world,” Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), told African ministers of finance, planning and economic development gathered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

“Africa is rich in the kinds of natural resources that in many parts of the world have been over-exploited and diminished by centuries of unsustainable development,” he stated.

This includes not just precious and semi-precious metals, but also nature-based resources such as forests and biodiversity, which support tourism and could also underpin inventions and pharmaceutical breakthroughs.

At the same time, many parts of the continent are rich in so-called natural fuels such as wind, solar and geothermal.

“The fundamental question,” said Mr. Steiner, “is how will all this potential be harvested for the benefit of Africa’s citizens and in a way that promotes stability in Africa and beyond.”

Celebrating one year of the YLMP Blog!

This post is a little late, but the YLMP Blog is now a year old!!! It's a little unfortunate that I missed the date itself (17th March), but I'd like to take this time to say a huge THANK YOU to all who have followed and supported us along the way. The blog has changed a lot since we first began (as you can see!) and it's been a pleasure interacting with you on here.


In the year gone by, we've added a bunch of new ways you can get in touch, the highlight being our new Twitter page.

Thanks especially to Aba Tetteh, David Abegenyega, Kenneth Richardson and Elinam Adadevoh for submitting articles and other content over the past year. Here's to another great year!

Get a year's free membership at G5 Leadership

Who says leaders can't be bargain hunters?! Leadership Now (the company behind Leading Blog) is working in collaboration with G5 Leadership to bring you a year's membership (normally worth $129) totally free! As a member, you'll have access to exclusive leadership training workshops, team surveys, leadership profiles, etc. More from Leading Blog:

G5 Leadership is a new leadership training company that offers 90-minute workshops and keynotes delivered via WebEx. G5 Leadership sessions are interactive: ask the experts, talk live, take polls, send chats, post comments, and download workbooks. You’ll hear from people like Steve Farber, Marshall Goldsmith, Bill Taylor, Bob Sutton, Tim Sanders, Scott Page, Steven Smith and more.

All you have to do is go to G5 Leadership and use this access code: 'g5leadershipnow'. Once you've done that, you fill out a registration form and you'll have full access to all the training G5 offers.

Unfortunately this is not available to students; you must register with a corporate email address (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo etc are not accepted).

4 ways to get involved in World Water Day

As you know, today is World Water Day, a day set aside to spread the word and think about the 900 million or so people who don't have access to clean water. Over on the ONE blog, they share five ways you can get involved in World Water Day without leaving your seat. I'll share four of them below (click here to read the original post):

1. Get informed: Visit the charity: water website to learn some key facts about unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation, how this affects women and children and the vast improvements made to a community from building just one inexpensive well. You can also watch videos, read first-hand stories and help spread the word by posting a banner on your site, MySpace page or Facebook profile.

2. Donate your voice: Make your voice heard by allowing water.org to post daily status updates for World Water Day until March 26, using your Facebook and/or Twitter accounts. It’s as easy as a few clicks of your mouse.

3. Drink water to give water: Although a coffee or soda here and there doesn’t seem like much of a luxury, beverages add up fast. Watch this cool, eye-opening short film made by Living Water International and take part in their Lenten H2O Challenge. You don’t have to celebrate Lent to participate — just choose a period of time where you make water your only beverage. Then set aside the money you would have otherwise spent on beverages.

4. Participate in a Q&A: Join US Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Maria Otero for a live Q&A webchat on Thursday, March 24. Discuss global water issues with the Under Secretary, ask her questions and learn how the US government is partnering with international organizations in efforts to improve global water challenges. The discussion will be held from 8:30 to 9:30 AM, EST. Visit the event’s Facebook page for more information on how to participate.

Desmond Tutu: African leaders must be accountable to peers

AFP reports:

Foreign military strikes in Libya against Moamer Kadhafi's rule would not be needed if African leaders held their peers to account, South Africa's Desmond Tutu said Sunday.

"If Africa's leaders held their peers to account there would be no need for the people of Libya to suffer human rights violations. And there would be no need for United Nations-sanctioned military interventions in Libya," Tutu said.

"Instead, Colonel Moamer Kadhafi has for more than 40 years honed his skills in the art of resource management to win friends and influence people. And as a result, Africa seems powerless to stop him," the Nobel Peace laureate said in a statement.

Tutu said he hoped events in north Africa would bring a new period of accountability for African leaders.

"May events in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya herald a new dawn for African politics in which leaders are not only accountable to their people but also answerable to their peers."

Action by pro-Kadhafi forces were an embarrassment to the continent, he said.

"The scenes of brutality being meted out with sophisticated weaponry by Libyan security forces against their own civilian population make God weep," said Tutu.

"With every blow they strike, each human rights abuse they perpetrate, they bring shame on Africa."

Greatness Summit this Friday!!!

There are only five more days until the DUES Greatness Summit!!! Food, transportation to and from Kumasi and all materials are included in the ticket price of only GH¢20 (or GH¢25 if you're not a student). Don't miss out - get your tickets today!

Click here for more information on the event.

Transactional Leadership - Contribute vs. Collaborate

This is the fifth and final installment of a five-part series on Transactional vs Relational Leadership we're following on the Lead Change Group blog. If you've not seen the previous posts in the series, I encourage you to read them before reading this one: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Today we’ll wrap up this series on the differences between Transactional Leadership and Servant Leadership. We’ve seen 4 words to disrupt our leadership foundation. These four words are: Respect, Serve, Trust, and Collaborate. We’ve compared these 4 words of Servant Leadership to four comparable words of Transactional Leadership. Let’s take a look at the difference between:

Contribute vs. Collaborate

The Transactional leader is looking for contributors. Another word for contributor is ‘producer’. Contribute something to the project, the company, the team or find yourself in search of a new job. The need to make a contribution drives some to be back-stabbing, cold-hearted corporate climbers. While others simply settle in to lower circles of responsibility, their contributions limited to the minimum required amount of effort necessary to provide value to the team. Transactional leaders search for contributors the way entrepreneurs search for venture capitalists. What do you bring to the table? How can you bring more satisfied customers, design a better product or provide a better service? If louder, faster, higher is the mantra of the trumpet player, bigger, faster, better is the mantra of the Transactional Leader. There’s always one more sale to make, one more quota to break. Contribute or die and if you contribute the most we’ll give you a fancy gold watch!

Collaboration is different from contribution. Collaboration starts with the premise that I don’t know it all and I don’t have to. Collaboration relies on the fact that there are some things I’m naturally good at and other things I don’t do well at all. Collaboration is the art of working with others. It’s what happens when I have enough respect for someone else that we’re able to serve one another. This builds the trust we need to collaborate on any project. I trust that in those seasons I am weak, you’ll be strong, when you’re weak I’ll be strong. Collaboration and cooperation go hand in hand. The respect on which collaboration is based allows us to see that any individual in the organization can make a difference regardless of position, title or job function. Collaboration is the leveraged strength of every member of a team.

I’ve heard it said that the difference between a winner and a champion is that a winner may win the game, but a champion wins consistently. Think of this year’s Super Bowl champs. They became champions by winning consistently. They didn’t win consistently because one player or one coach made a winning contribution to the team. They won because every player worked together to shape the team into the champions they became.

Put simply, contribution is how one individual adds value to the team. Collaboration is the leveraged power of the team to fulfill the vision.

Four words. Four words to disrupt our leadership foundation.

Respect | Serve | Trust | Collaborate

These four words can transform the leader inside of you. They can shape you and your team into an irresistible force that will leave a lasting and sustainable impact on the world around you.

Don’t settle for simply pointing the way. Serve well those who have been entrusted to you and lead where you are.

God bless,
Chad

We've been reading...

Barclays launch Africa Anti-Poverty Effort
allAfrica -- Around 60,000 people in Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda will soon have access to financial services through Barclays' commitment to the Business Call to Action (BCtA) a global initiative aimed at supporting the private sector's efforts to fight poverty. Barclays' pledge is part of the bank's three-year, £10 million Banking on Change initiative, which seeks to improve the quality of life for poor people by extending and developing access to basic financial services in 11 countries in Africa, Asia, and South America, working in partnership with CARE International and Plan International. "Extending access to banking and financial services within low-income communities allows poor people to manage their money more efficiently and effectively and creates new opportunities for inclusive economic growth," said Natalie Africa, Programme Manager of the Business Call to Action...

Pepsi creates bottle from 100% plant material
Geek.com -- Regardless of your preference for Pepsi or Coca-Cola, if you buy it in bottles then that isn’t great for the environment. The petroleum-based plastic used to create them can take decades to breakdown and can’t easily be recycled. Coca-Cola has already started experimenting with using renewable material in its bottles which make up around 30% of each bottle. But Pepsi has gone a step further and managed to make a new plastic bottle consisting of only plant materials, therefore breaking the link and reliance on petroleum. The new bottles use a mix of switch grass, pine bark, corn husks, and a number of other renewable materials. Importantly, Pepsi has managed to make the new bottle indistinguishable from the old one so it will have no impact on marketing or brand recognition...

Nobel Prize campaign for African women
APO -- The Italian Cooperation is working with over 30 local authorities and hundreds of personalities from the Italian and international institutional, cultural and entertainment worlds and civil society on a campaign to promote the group candidacy of African women for the Nobel Peace Prize. The Nobel Peace Prize for African Women (NOPPAW) campaign sponsored by Solidarietà e Cooperazione Cipsi and ChiAma l'Africa with the support of the foreign ministry's DGCS and Minister Franco Frattini, is organising dozens of events around Italy to spotlight African women's growing role in the continent's daily life. "African women are the continent's compelling leaders, both in daily life and in social and political activities," asserted Guido Barbera, President of Solidarietà e Cooperazione Cipsi. "Africa stands on their feet. Female entrepreneurs, politicians, promoters of rights, health, peace and co-existence; it is impossible to imagine the future of Africa without picturing the many ordinary women who carry the weight of this land every day, taking on its tragedies and bearing its hopes"...

Laptops to boost Africa's e-literacy
Media Club SA -- The image seems to come straight out of a science fiction novel; a class of 50 pupils with no teacher in sight, each being taught by their very own laptop on their desk. This utopian vision could be a reality in the near future as the African Union (AU) and the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) organisation signed a memorandum of understanding in February 2011 that's aimed at providing primary school children across Africa with laptops. OLPC’s vice president of global advocacy Matthew Keller and Lidet Tilahun,vice president of the organisation’s international outreach, met with members of the AU at the union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to confirm their commitment to the two-year deal. Keller said that the partnership is yet another significant step toward ensuring children around the world have access to world-class education. He believes the AU is dedicating itself to a world where children become the agents of change...

Entrepreneurs are transforming the developing world

Randall Kempner reports (Huffington Post):

At least once a day at work (and all too often at cocktail parties), I have the opportunity to explain to a newcomer in my field why I think small and growing businesses (SGBs) are key to long-term poverty eradication in developing countries.

"If you look at the economic pyramid of a developing country, like the U.S.," I tell them, "at least 50 percent of jobs and GDP come from small businesses." Even as I write this, I'm eating Chinese take-out from Mei Wah, the second culinary venture of D.C. restaurateur Larry La. Outside of my office, I hear the vacuum of the nightly cleaning crew, managed by a local company that provides janitorial services to D.C. area businesses. Throughout my day I interact in a variety of ways with small businesses that are the fabric of the U.S. economy.

But what does this have to do with poverty in the developing world? It turns out, quite a lot. Because while formal small businesses make up the backbone of "developed" nations, they contribute to only 16 percent of GDP and 18 percent of total employment in the "developing" world. That's a big difference -- and one that we at the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) think can and should be overcome.

Small businesses are essential because they create jobs, generate income and take a stake in the communities in which they operate. They also generate goods and services for local communities. When led by the right kind of managers, they grow -- and create more jobs, more services and more wealth. And increasingly more often, they tackle social and environmental issues as well.

Ken Ofori-Atta receives prestigious award

Ken Ofori-Atta of Databank has become the first African to win the prestigious John Jay award. Awarded annually for distinguished professional achievement, Ken received his award alongside four other alumni of Columbia College. The awards were presented at a black-tie dinner event in New York in support of the John Jay National Scholarship Programme.

According to the Columbia website, the Scholarship Programme aims to: "extend and enhance the academic and extracurricular experiences for outstanding first-year College students. John Jay Scholars are offered the opportunity to participate in special programs such as panels, discussions and presentations by leading professors and professionals, all designed to promote three goals: intellectual growth, leadership development and global awareness."

Ken is indeed a flag-bearer for leadership in his generation. Widely lauded for leaving a lucrative career on Wall Street to return to Ghana to start a business, Ken is as committed to his country as he is to upholding his values of leadership and excellence.

Heartfelt congratulations go out to Ken from all at Databank Foundation and the Young Leaders Mentorship Programme. You are an inspiration!

Read more about Ken and his award here.

Mentor-mentee session this Friday

We've just confirmed that students are back in school after the teacher's strike last week, so our mentor-mentee session will be going ahead on Friday the 18th as planned. As usual, please ensure that at least one mentor is present from each group.

This is our last session before the Appraisal Forms are due on in a weeks time (on the 23rd of March). As such, you can hand any completed forms to myself or Christiana at the end of Friday's session. You'll have till Wednesday to hand in any remaining forms.

Africa is not a victim of circumstance

Elinam, our Programme Manager, directed me to this article by Adjoa Acquaah-Harrison. Enjoy!

On the one hand, charity demands justice: recognition and respect for the legitimate rights of individuals and peoples. It strives to build the earthly city according to law and justice. On the other hand, charity transcends justice and completes it in the logic of giving and forgiving. The earthly city is promoted not merely by relationships of rights and duties, but to an even greater and more fundamental extent by relationships of gratuitousness, mercy and communion.
- Pope Benedict XVI - The encyclical

On first blush, Pope Benedict's quote from his recent encyclical may seem unrelated to the subject of wealth-creation in Africa. However, the universal message of this, his third Encyclical, or letter to the bishops and the world, speaks volumes to ATTITUDE, a requirement for wealth-creation, integral to behavior that also impedes our African progress. The Pope talks about the ongoing global economic upheavals and the human attitudes that caused them, and he speaks to "all people of good will" -- on the subject of "integral human development in charity and truth" which interprets into an economy of human values.

Africa is not a victim of circumstance and we must replace complacency with confidence. All Africans of good will are needed to integrate the development of the continent and take responsibility for our collective destiny. If we cannot change our attitude at this critical time, then we might just as well stop feeling sorry for ourselves and prepare to die at our own hands. We stand on the precipice of our own salvation, no need to rehash our old sad, colonial stories or feeling sorry for ourselves.

James Shikwati, a Kenyan Economist writes that “our economies have not prepared our populations to be producers to give the treasury the muscle to have and then give". In fact, history reminds us that Western capitalists plundered Africa “so we must celebrate when we see capitalism on its knees.” And yet, it seems that in spite of the increasing number of Africans who have had the benefit of western education and excelled at some of the world's most competitive institutions, nothing changes except the people themselves.

Transactional Leadership - Buy-in vs. Trust

This is the fourth installment of a five-part series on Transactional vs Relational Leadership we're following on the Lead Change Group blog. If you've not seen the previous posts in the series, I encourage you to read them before reading this one: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

We’ve been talking about the differences between Transactional Leadership and Servant Leadership. We’re learning 4 words to disrupt our leadership foundation. Today we’re going to discover the difference between buy-in vs. trust.

Once the Transactional Leader has begun to leverage the ‘value’ of his followers and started ‘investing’ in them, his next step is to achieve ‘buy-in’ from those who follow. For the Transactional Leader ‘buy-in’ is critical. Have you ever noticed the difference in the way employees and owners work? For owners, business is personal. It’s more than their livelihood, it’s an expression of who they are. But employees are different. For an employee a job is what they do, not who they are. When casting vision transactional leaders are looking for buy-in. Buy-in is more than positive affirmation. It’s a whole-hearted acceptance of the vision cast by the leader. Buy-in is the difference between an owner and an employee. My uncle used to say, “When I was young I thought I wanted a career. Now that I’m old I realize I just wanted a paycheck.” Think about the things you ‘buy-in’ to. If you’re like me you’re a discerning shopper who looks for the best deal possible before making any kind of purchase. You’re not going to buy-in until you’re certain you’re getting the best value possible. And that’s exactly how followers shop for leaders. Which visionary leader will offer me the best deal? As the leader how can I package the vision so people will give themselves to it? Too often, striving for buy-in reduces the most beautiful of dreams down to a clever catch phrase and slick marketing, the heart of the matter lost one talking point, one sound bite at a time.

Trust is different from buy-in. Trust develops slowly and it’s affects are longer lasting. Trust grows from the seed of respect and blossoms in the refreshing waters of service. Trust is a two way street. Followers trust leaders who respect them and who serve well. Leaders trust followers who respect the significance of the work that needs to be done and who faithfully serve to fulfill their responsibilities.

Changing an organization based on Transactional Leadership can be difficult because the group has bought into an idea, a method for how things are done. In order to change direction the value of the new idea has to be sold to those responsible for guarding the current system. It’s a tough sell from the start.

In trust-based leadership I’m not simply following an idea or a method. I’m not serving a system. I’m part of something bigger than myself that’s made up of other individuals, men and women on whom I rely for my own success. It’s relational, not transactional. I trust that others in the organization are giving their best for the good of all and they can trust that I will do the same. When change becomes necessary it comes more easily, the merits of the new idea strengthened by the trust found in my relationship to those I lead and those who lead me.

Next time we’ll compare two final words to disrupt our leadership foundation. In the meantime consider the following:

• What do you think is a groups biggest barrier to trust?
• When leading through a change how do you determine which key influencer the group trusts the most?

God bless,
Chad

Benefits of mentoring

Mentoring is often touted to be an extremely satisfying experience not only for mentees, but for mentors also. The specific reasons for this vary from person to person and from relationship to relationship. As always however, there are some general aspects that overlap and these are what I'd like to talk about today. Anne Rolfe* has identified four such areas which I'll share with you:

1. The development and growth of the individuals
   
2. Connecting and building relationships, as well as the thought process used in mentoring, contribute to people’s well-being.
   
3. Tapping into tacit knowledge. This is the main purpose of mentoring; literally picking someone’s brain for the wisdom born of experience.
   
4. Gaining perspective. Increasing the intelligence people bring to any situation by seeing more than one point of view. This improves, decision-making, teamwork and workplace harmony.

As I mentioned before, these are general areas and so we're only just scratching the surface here. Aside from the satisfaction you get from knowing you're making a positive difference in someone's life, your mentees can unlock whole new areas of interest you never knew you had, talents you never knew you had. If you've never been a mentor and have the interest and commitment, I'd certainly advise you to do so!

You can mentor anyone who is willing to learn from you; a family member, someone in your class or church... the list goes on. Or, you could apply to be a mentor on our programme. Applications for our next programme will be opening in a few months, so keep checking the blogs for updates if you're interested!

*You can follow Anne Rolfe on Twitter here.

Do women leaders matter?

Here are Nicholas Kristof's thoughts on the issue:

There’s a natural tendency to think that the oppression so many women face around the world is just a function of male exploitation, and that the solution is simply more women leaders. In fact, a quick look at Bangladesh shows that it is far more complicated than that. Bangladesh has a woman prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, who has done nothing much for women – and who now is pursuing a campaign of vilification against Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Peace Prize winner who has been a champion of impoverished women all around the globe.

Yunus, as you probably know, was one of the founders of microfinance and started Grameen Bank to give impoverished women a chance to start businesses and generate income. He has helped millions and millions of women in Bangladesh and in a growing number of other countries around the world, and he has also been a formidable advocate for equal rights and opportunities for women. Indeed, it’s difficult to think of two individuals who have done more for the women of the world over the last few decades than Yunus and another Bangladeshi man, Fazle Abed, the founder of an extraordinary Bangladeshi anti-poverty organization, BRAC. Microfinance is no panacea, but 8 million Grameen borrowers in Bangladesh are testimony that it can make a difference.

But when Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize, many Bangladeshis – especially politicians like Sheikh Hasina – were jealous. An abortive political bid by Yunus also left them nervous that he might pursue a political future. And Yunus has a talent for self-promotion that left some Bangladeshis carping that he’s a showboat, that his model doesn’t work, that he was out for himself, and so on. In the last month or so, Sheikh Hasina has persistently gone after Yunus, pushing him out of his job at Grameen Bank and pursuing legal charges against him that block him from traveling and could send him to prison.

Teachers strike at Kinbu

Unfortunately due to a strike at Kinbu today, our Mini Seminar will have to be postponed to a later date. We are unaware as of yet how long the strike will last but we're hopeful out mentor-mentee session next week will still go ahead.

I'll keep you posted, please check back for updates.

6 Demotivators

This post has been adapted from the Leadership Freak blog. It was originally written by Dan Rockwell.

Young leaders frequently ask me to explain motivation techniques because they work with unmotivated employees or volunteers. We discuss carrots (rewards) and sticks (punishments) as motivational tools. In addition, we discuss the power of progress and advancement opportunities as motivational techniques. However, I’m taking a different path today. Let’s take a stroll down the dark side of motivation by exploring de-motivators.

Actions without why’s demotivate. Humans need higher purpose. For example, higher purpose motivates parents to work long hours in order to provide for their children. Without purpose long hours are meaningless. Furthermore, people who don’t understand the greater significance of their tasks, job or even life lose passion.

Distrust demotivates. I’ve heard people complain they were promised an opportunity that never materialized. Or, consider this complaint “s/he took credit for my work.” Unethical leaders quickly let the steam out of motivated individuals.

Moving targets demotivate. People working to achieve performance objectives that unexpectedly shift may feel their motivational fire cooling.

Ambiguous or unattainable goals demotivate. It’s true that setting goals that are just out of reach can fan a person’s enthusiasm. But if you set the goal too far out of reach they’ll give up.

Favoritism demotivates. This ugly problem can emerge in any situation. Anyone who is promoted to a position where they manage teams that include personal friends can experience the negative impact of perceived favoritism.

Under appreciation demotivates. People who don’t feel understood and appreciated for their efforts gradually lose fervor.

One-way communication demotivates. Receiving messages from on high without participation in the process makes people feel they don’t matter. When we don’t matter our performance doesn’t matter either.

It’s too easy to demotivate people. One powerful motivation technique is eliminating demotivators.

We've been reading...

US funding to address brain drain in Africa
Washington Post -- The United States will fund training for 140,000 African health care workers in an initiative to "transform and dramatically increase" medical education on the continent, the top U.S. AIDS official announced Tuesday. Ambassador Eric Goosby said the plan will bring partnerships between African and U.S. medical schools by "really fostering and strengthening a collegial network" to empower medical professionals on the continent that shoulders the worst of the world's HIV-AIDS epidemic and its heaviest load of other chronic diseases. He said he hoped it also would help stem, and even reverse, the brain drain of doctors and nurses who receive expensive, subsidized training in Africa, only to be recruited to work overseas amid a worldwide shortage of health professionals...

North and South Sudan make ‘significant’ progress on steps for separation
UN News -- North and South Sudan have made “significant” progress on a wide range of follow-up arrangements between the two States following the southern region’s vote for independence, the top United Nations envoy in the country said today. “Much of the ground work has already been completed. Both parties are engaging seriously and making progress,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Representative Haile Menkerios told the Security Council, citing agreement in principle on open borders, good neighbourly relations, non-interference in each other’s affairs, a framework for non-aggression and military cooperation, citizenship, residency and property ownership. The two sides are also working towards mutually beneficial arrangements on oil revenue sharing and other economic matters, he said...

Don't copy Ghana's health insurance
Oxfam -- A major health insurance program in Ghana that the World Bank is pushing as a success model for other developing countries is severely flawed and not working for most Ghanaians, according to a new report by international agency Oxfam and Ghanaian NGOs. Rather than two-thirds of the population being covered by the program, as the Ghanaian National Health Insurance Authority and World Bank have claimed, in reality fewer than one in five Ghanaians could be benefiting. The report 'Achieving a Shared Goal: Free universal health care in Ghana’, launched today in Accra, says instead that most people are having to continue to pay out-of-pocket for their health care in a parallel "cash-and-carry" system. Or else they turn to unqualified drug peddlers or even give birth at home without any qualified care at all...

Why foreign aid matters to women
Huffington Post -- Each year on International Women's Day, I take time to reflect on the many inspiring and courageous women I've had the privilege to meet in my travels as president of American Jewish World Service (AJWS), an international development and human rights organization that supports grassroots projects in 36 countries in the Global South. The communities I visit are often ravaged by hunger, violence and disease, all of which are byproducts of gut-wrenching poverty. And, from community to community, it always seems that the common thread I see is the marginalization of women, who are oftentimes barred from working or exploited by employers, forced to marry before reaching adulthood and have little if any access to education or information about reproductive health. Because of the latter, the global HIV/AIDS pandemic continues to hit women in poor communities especially hard...

Video: Patrick Awuah's TEDTalk

This is an old video (from back in 2007) but as they say, like all good ideas it's still largely relevant today. Here's a little about TED from their webiste:

TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader.

On TED.com, we make the best talks and performances from TED and partners available to the world, for free. More than 700 TEDTalks are now available, with more added each week.

We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we're building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world's most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other. This site, launched April 2007, is an ever-evolving work in progress, and you're an important part of it.

Click here to go to the TED page for this video.

Transactional Leadership - Invest vs. Serve

This is the third installment of a five-part series on Transactional vs Relational Leadership we're following on the Lead Change Group blog. If you've not seen the previous posts in the series, I encourage you to read them before reading this one: Part 1 | Part 2

With Transactional Leadership once you’ve discovered the value someone provides you begin to invest your time and energy in that person or idea. This is like any financial investment. You expect to get something in return. But that’s not really the nature of an investment is it? You’re not pouring money into an IRA in the hopes you’ll get a little something in return. You’re hoping for more than you risked in the first place. You gage the value of your investment by how much compounding interest or residual income you are able to receive as a result of the risk you take. The same is true for transactional leaders. You invest in someone or in their idea because you’re convinced you’ll get more out of it than you put into it. But what happens if the investment doesn’t pay off? What happens when a leader invests in followers who don’t follow through? Think of the coach with the perfect game strategy leading a team of under-skilled players. It takes more than a winning strategy or remarkable talent. Both are necessary to win the game. We stop investing in others when we realize we’ll never get the return we’re looking for.

The Servant Leader approaches these relationships differently. Out of respect for the person, a servant leader chooses to meet that person where they are in order to take them where they should be. It’s not about an investment being made, but a responsibility fulfilled. As a leader you’ve been entrusted with the care of those you lead. When faced with an underperforming employee the Servant Leader recognizes an opportunity for growth. Conflict isn’t personal. It’s the resistance that builds the strength and the skill necessary to take the individual and the organization to the next level. Correction isn’t corrosive. It’s a reminder of the core values that define how we relate within this organization and what this organization is really all about. We serve by looking out for the needs of others and the needs of the organization we lead. For a servant leader no task is too menial, no job is too small. The transactional leader is focused on how to protect his investment. The servant leader is focused on meeting the needs of others.

Next time we’ll look at two more words to disrupt our leadership foundation. In the meantime consider the following:

• What are some practical ways you can better serve the people you lead?
• In what way is the idea of serving the antithesis of leading?

God bless,
Chad

Mini Seminar next week!

It's been a little while since we last met, but that'll all change next Friday. We'll be having our last Mini Seminar for the term; Personal Finance by Nana Gyesie. Hope you can all make it! We'll be meeting at Kinbu at 3pm.

On the Friday after that (that's the 18th of March), we'll be having our last mentor-mentee session of the term. This one is particularly important as it's the last session before the Appraisal forms are due on the 23rd. It's really important that you get them in on time, so I advise you to grab that last opportunity to get them filled by the horns.

All the best!

DUES Greatness Summit 2011

After the great success of the Greatness Summit last year, DUES is back in full force again! On Saturday the 26th of March, the DUES team will be taking over the Ghana National Cultural Centre in Kumasi. The theme this time around is "Leading Change - Making a Difference in our Generation". Before I jump into that, here's a little about DUES itself:

DUES stands for Databank Universal Economic School. The brainchild of two national service personnel, it started in 2006 at Central University College as a network to build wealth for young people. Four years later, DUES Clubs can be found in 50 tertiary institutions across Ghana spreading the message of investment, excellence and leadership.

Their goals are to:

• Emphasize individual responsibility in the choice to invest and succeed
• Recognise and develop great leadership and personal integrity
• Encourage and practice teamwork among members
• Provide opportunities for gaining increased knowledge and understanding on issues of finance as well as community, national and world affairs
• Open avenues for personal and group action leafing to the spread of investment knowledge among a broad spectrum of students and young people
• Attract outstanding young and motivated individuals in the country who have demonstrated a commitment to development, professional achievement and will want to make strides in their career, investment knowledge and potential for leadership

Headlining this year's Summit is none other than Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, managing director of the World Bank. Any of that strike a chord with you? If so, I definitely advise you to make room in your schedule! Tickets are GH¢20 for students and GH¢25 for professionals. This covers food, all conference materials and transport to and from the venue (buses will be available from all DUES affiliated tertiary institutions).

Everyone who attends will receive a certificate of participation (great for your CV!) and a wealth of information that I have no doubt will make a positive impact. So what are you waiting for? Head on over to Databank (Accra, Tema, Takoradi or Kumasi) or any DUES Club campus (all major tertiary institutions across Ghana) for your ticket!

For more information including a detailed list of speakers, see the poster above (click to enlarge), call 024 622 2691, 026 874 7278, or 024 356 9255, or visit the DUES website.

Transactional Leadership - Value vs Respect

This is the second installment of a five-part series on Transactional vs Relational Leadership we're following on the Lead Change Group blog. To read part one, click here.

The role of ‘value’ in transactional leadership is based on the idea that people follow the leader because the leader somehow adds value to their lives. The benefits could be social, political, economic or even spiritual. Followers follow because of the value the leader adds to them. The leader benefits from the value brought by those who follow him. It’s reciprocal and the leadership equation continues successfully unhindered as long as everyone can clearly see the benefit of the relationship. The problem with value based leadership is that it’s focused on one single idea, “What’s in it for me?” Don’t get me wrong. That’s not an inherently bad question to ask. People are in business to make a profit. The reason we want to improve our leadership skill is because we have this vision of a future that’s better for us and the people we lead. But, ‘What’s in it for me?’ can’t be the foundation of our leadership relationships. What’s in it for me is transient. What makes me happy from one moment to the next is dynamic. Therefore the value I’m looking for out of any given relationship is constantly changing. It’s why married couples can fall in and out of love. It’s why coaches can be heroes one day and villains the next. You didn’t win the game. The value of this relationship has just been diminished. You don’t make me feel like you once did. It must be time to find a new partner in marriage.

‘Respect’ approaches relationships differently than ‘value’. Instead of leaders looking for what they can gain from others they recognize that every individual has intrinsic value apart from what they give to an organization. Out of respect for the individual the leader looks for ways to unleash the unrealized and untapped potential of those they lead. Instead of using people as a resource they challenge and inspire people to become more than they ever imagined possible on their own. Respect becomes the foundation on which a new kind of leadership is built. When respect drives the leader’s responsibility to lead and the follower’s willingness to follow the paradigm changes for how we relate to one another. Because of my respect for you I won’t treat you as a commodity or as a means to an end. Out of respect for you I have a responsibility as a leader to attempt to understand your hopes and dreams, to use my resources and experience to equip, encourage and empower you to fulfill your maximum potential. The follower has a responsibility here as well. Out of respect for those who lead the follower commits to serve the organization well. This service isn’t simply about a paycheck or promotion but about giving my best, being fully engaged with the responsibilities entrusted to me, and doing what’s right for the organization as a whole. Respect defines the way we relate in times of success, failure, conflict and cooperation.

Put simply, value looks for what’s in this relationship for me. Respect dreams of what’s possible for you as we serve together.

Next time we’ll look at two more words to disrupt our leadership foundation. In the meantime consider the following:

• Are your leadership relationships based on value or respect?
• What are the inherent challenges or apparent weaknesses in leading from respect rather than value?

God bless,
Chad