The Centre for Support to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Rwanda
(referred to by the French acronym CAPMER) is Rwanda’s best established BDS support institution. Initiated as a UNIDO project in 2000, and subsequently established as an independent organization, CAPMER’s mission was to become “the best professional structure as far as the provision of Business Development Services (BDS) is concerned.” CAPMER has since made good gains towards achieving this goal, however, its new managing director felt that it was still a way off. He therefore asked OTF to work with him in devising a new strategic plan that would guide and focus CAPMER’s future efforts.
The primary focus of the strategy was on CAPMER’s business model. CAPMER’s previous strategy was ambiguous as to whether CAPMER should be a direct provider of BDS services, or whether it should facilitate the provision of BDS by third party providers (in effect, supporting the development of a private market for BDS). To date, the majority of its efforts and resources were directed towards direct BDS provision to SMEs. However, with a limited staff base, this model limited CAPMER’s potential impact, leaving it unable to effectively meet demand for BDS in Rwanda.
Therefore, Aref worked with CAPMER staff, its board of directors and key CAPMER partners in crafting a strategy to migrate CAPMER from direct BDS provision towards support of a private BDS market over a four year period. The strategy laid out how individual initiatives undertaken by CAPMER would change overtime to ensure such a migration, highlighting key performance indicators that would enable CAPMER’s leadership to track the progress of the transition.
Under the guidance of a new strategy for 2007-10, CAPMER is in a position to play a central role in supporting the development of a private BDS market in Rwanda, acting as key coordinator among a range of different actors.
- Latest
- Aref Adamali works as a regional economist for the World Bank Group, working out of Nairobi and Istanbul. He spent 5 years before this designing and manufacturing furniture. Having previously advised governments and businesses in developing economies on competitiveness and innovation, he applied some of this same advice to his family’s business. He realized that it is harder to implement good advice than to give it. So he is now back to just giving it.
