Miriam Otoo

Micro-Entrepreneurship in Niger: Factors Affecting the Success of Women Street Food Vendors

Micro-entrepreneurship in the informal sector plays a vital role in generating employment and income in West Africa. In this article, the authors examine business success factors for micro-entrepreneurs involved in the production and sale of street foods in Niger, drawing on the resource-based view theory. Business success was measured by size of firm and vendors perception of enterprise growth. Their results indicate that business experience is an important success factor, while the need for cash is a constraint for business success. A rare resource, limited access to financial assets translates into limited opportunities for growth of these informal micro-enterprises into viable businesses.

WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN WEST AFRICA: THE COWPEA STREET FOOD SECTOR IN NIGER AND GHANA

Women entrepreneurship in the informal sector, such as street food vending, is important for poverty alleviation in West Africa. The street food sector provides employment for women and inexpensive and nutritious food for the urban poor. In this paper, we determine the importance of the cowpea street food sector, evaluate the determinants of successful enterprises and ascertain the impact of economic, cultural, religious and geographic differentials between enterprises in Niamey, Niger and Kumasi, Ghana. Data were collected through in-person interviews with 114 and 122 women street food entrepreneurs in both countries in 2009. Results revealed that women entrepreneurs engaged in the cowpea street food sector can earn incomes 4 times and 16 times higher than the minimum legal wage in Niamey and Kumasi, respectively. Incomes earned from these entrepreneurial activities contribute directly to health, education and needs of their families. OLS regression results indicate that lack of financial resources, stable business locations and religious beliefs are important entrepreneurial success factors. Cross-country comparisons revealed enterprises in Kumasi are larger and more successful than those in Niamey.

Assessing the finance and economics of resource recovery and reuse solutions across scales

The recovery and reuse of wastewater can contribute to reducing poverty, improving food security, improving nutrition and health, and managing natural resources more sustainability to protect ecosystems and build climate resilient communities. Reusing wastewater generates both private and public benefits, yet care must be taken to minimize environmental harm and risks to human health. Assessing the costs and benefits of wastewater use is challenging for decision making. Financial analysis of wastewater and other reuse options can underpin decision making from a business standpoint, and economic analysis provides the information needed to support public policy decisions. In this chapter, we provide a framework for assessing the finance and economics of wastewater and other reuse options. We examine several components of resource recovery and reuse, including water reuse, energy recovery, and nutrient capture from wastewater as well as fecal sludge and biosolids. We describe the cost-savings and partial cost-recovery made possible by wastewater use and we discuss value propositions for possible business models. Many water reuse solutions do not achieve financial cost recovery but are viable from an economic perspective. However, public agencies can enhance revenue streams by supporting more than water recovery and/or by targeting high-end users.

Business Models and Economic Approaches for Nutrient Recovery from Wastewater and Fecal Sludge

Plant nutrient recovery from wastewater and fecal sludge is high on the development agenda, driven by the need to feed the global population, the discussion around peak phosphorous, increasing fertilizer prices and stricter regulations for safeguarding the environment from pollution. With a shift in thinking from nutrient removal to nutrient recovery, new public-private partnerships are developing to capture nutrients from the waste streams for reuse in agriculture. The prospects for cost recovery from capturing phosphorous are significant, if savings in wastewater treatment and sludge disposal costs are considered, as so far the phosphate recovery costs still result in prices higher than those of phosphate rock, unless niche markets are targeted. The chapter differentiates between nutrient recovery options commonly seen in sewered and non-sewered (on-site) sanitation systems, looking at wastewater, fecal sludge, biosolids and urine. To date, nutrient recovery from wastewater is driven more by the treatment sector and its challenges or by changing regulations, rather than by market demand for alternative fertilizers.

Effectiveness of Alternative Extension Methods through Radio Broadcasting in West Africa

Abstract There is an urgent need to quantify which extension methods are most effective in Africa. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of alternative extension methods on adoption of the triple bagging cowpea storage technology in Niger and Burkina Faso. This study was designed as a quasi-experiment with two alternative extension methods studied: village demonstrations and demonstrations reinforced by radio broadcasts. Interview data was collected on triple-bag adoption in villages with the two types of extension programmes and control villages with no storage extension. Binary logit regression analysis was used to identify factors which influenced triple-bag adoption. Storage demonstrations boosted adoption of triple-bag storage by statistically significant marginal probabilities of 34% in Niger and 13% in Burkina Faso, compared to villages with no demonstrations or radio messages. Reinforcement of the demonstration experience with radio broadcasts increased adoption by statistically significant estimates of 23% in Niger and 20% in Burkina Faso. Reinforcement of extension programmes with radio messages is strongly supported by this research. In this case, an already effective demonstration programme was made more effective by associated radio messages. This is an example of evidence based extension that supports decisions on extension programming with quantitative data on the impact of alternatives on behaviour change.

Economics of water reuse for industrial, environmental, recreational and potable purposes

Water reuse offers considerable economic value through the provision of health and environmental benefits, water and energy cost-savings and opportunities for businesses. In addition, activities associated with water reuse can generate revenue through the sale of water, energy, carbon credits, and by-products. Data limitations restrict the degree to which we can conduct a fully informed economic analysis of all pertinent costs and benefits. Yet the available information suggests the net benefits of water reuse can be substantial. We examine selected empirical cases of water reuse, highlighting the costs and benefits, and also reflecting on the enabling environment, challenges and opportunities for selected reuse options. The country-level experiences we describe provide insight for countries whose water resources are stretched by increasing urbanization and a changing climate.

Energy recovery from domestic and agro-waste streams in Uganda: a socioeconomic assessment

Recovering energy from waste offers dual benefits – a) improved waste management, and b) provision of reliable energy to households, institutions and commercial entities. In this report, we present a socioeconomic assessment of three energy business models (briquette manufacturing, on-site (public toilet) energy generation, and agro-waste electricity generation) based on feasibility studies carried out in the city of Kampala, Uganda. We assess the potential economic, environmental and social impacts of waste-to-energy business models taking into consideration a life cycle of emissions to provide decision makers with the overall costs and benefits of the models to society versus a business-as-usual scenario.