<h1 style="text-align:center;">5 Resources to Have in Your Success Kit</h1>With the changing global scenario, it is important for individuals to be one step ahead. The following five important resources will help companies and individuals to perform better:<a href="http://firstround.com/review/how-to-become-insanely-well-connected/">How to Become Insanely Well Connected</a> by Chris Fralic details key strategies that helped him to become a highly-connective networker. The best way to be highly influential is to be human to everyone you meet. The article describes how to boost your career forward, the do’s and don’ts for receiving responses from influencers and, how to measure your performance.<a href="http://www.bain.com/publications/articles/global-private-equity-report-2017.aspx">The BAIN Global Private Equity Report 2017</a> outlines the changing global economic scenario and explains how Private Equity continues to remain the most demanded asset among the institutional investors who are looking for long-term investments.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/board_room_1_7b04b1309f.jpg"></figure>In the stressful corporate world, where travel is quite frequent, sleep really matters. In the article <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/10/opinion/sunday/can-sleep-deprivation-cure-depression.html?utm_source=pocket&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=pockethits&amp;_r=3">Your Sleep Schedule is Making You Sick</a> Richard Friedman outlines ways to align your lifestyle to have a sound sleep.Most Wall Street analysts and investors focus on Return on Equity (ROE) to measure their company’s performance. However another metric, which is often overlooked by executives and investors, is Return on Assets (ROA) to analyse the long-term profitability trends. You can read more about the latest trends in <a href="https://hbr.org/2010/03/the-best-way-to-measure-compan">The Best Way to Measure Company Performance</a>Lastly, <a href="http://intrinsicinvesting.com/2017/04/04/how-moats-make-a-difference/">How Moats Make a Difference</a> outlines the different kinds of moats and the kinds of opportunities available to these moats. The most important aspect of investment approach is to focus on companies that possess a competitive moat. There are different kinds of moats within the firm’s business model which gives rise to competitive advantages.

RENEW explores five articles that will help companies and individuals to perform better

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5 Resources to Have in Your Success Kit

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Three Critical Resources for Business Growth</h1>Too often we witness companies who are equipped with a wonderful product and an elaborate business model fail without ever realizing their potential. The truth is, building a successful company is much more than simply writing the execution plans we all did in business school, it involves understanding the “real-life” components of your business, namely your customers. As outlined by Udacity in their course <a href="https://www.udacity.com/course/how-to-build-a-startup--ep245">How to Build a Startup</a>, instead of focusing on what the entrepreneur thinks will work, it is critical for companies to leave behind their own internal thought bubbles, get out of their offices, and go out on the road to validate their ideas by engaging with real-life customers. Only then can the entrepreneur find proper solutions to their difficult questions and establish a truly effective business model.But, the hard work doesn’t end there. If we had a dollar for every time we heard a company tell us that their business model will allow them to provide the consumer with the lowest cost, highest quality product all while offering the best customer service company in the market, then we'd be rich. Not surprisingly, we discover that the companies that make this claim are mediocre at best. Why?In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Discipline-Market-Leaders-Customers-Dominate/dp/0201407191">The Discipline of Market Leaders</a> the authors outline the reason: market leaders pick one of the three core business strategies (cost, quality or service) and obsess about doing that one thing better than their competition, while happily settling to simply keep up with their competition in the other two areas. Once the one area is chosen, all of their strategic planning, investments, budgeting activities, incentives, etc., focus on making that one area better and better, every week, month and year. Everyone in the company knows that this one area of focus is paramount.Think of Apple, Walmart or Nordstrom as examples of market leaders that have chosen a particular area and continue to obsess over it. At RENEW, we enjoy challenging ourselves, our pipeline and our portfolio companies to define this one thing, which in turn helps us and them to focus our work and tap into new ideas to compete, win, and become market leaders.So how can businesses figure out what’s needed for their go-to-market strategy? It’s a crucial moment that can so easily go off the rails without the right strategy. <a href="http://firstround.com/review/leslies-compass-a-framework-for-go-to-market-strategy/">Leslie’s Compass</a> is a simple test for entrepreneurs to smartly deploy their limited sales and marketing dollars when they are launching their first product and have one chance to make a strong, first impression.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/3_resources_6602c61d80.jpg"></figure>

RENEW explores three resources for companies that will help them grow into market leaders.

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Three Critical Resources for Business Growth

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Angels Descend on Addis!</h1>2017 has already proven to be a busy year, with RENEW hosting an Econ-Tourism Trip for members of the Impact Angel Network from Delaware, Colorado and the United Kingdom this past week. The group met with Ethiopian entrepreneurs, from both RENEW’s portfolio and investment pipeline, and visited a number of businesses in and around Addis Ababa.The investors were introduced to companies spanning multiple sectors – from commodities and food manufacturing to textiles and consumer goods several of which are being considered for upcoming investments. The group also visited current <a href="../../marketplace/portfolio.html">portfolio investments</a> of the IAN, including Desta, Mama Fresh, METAD and our Ethiopian sesame company.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/econ_tourism_feb_20172_582382b4de.jpg"></figure>One of the many highlights of the trip was the first ever SME pitch session hosted by RENEW at <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/companies">The Exchange,</a> wherein carefully selected entrepreneurs presented their companies to the participating angel investors. This event made the company visits that occurred later in the week by the investors more productive and provided them with them background required to ask the right questions. This, in turn, engendered interest and confidence in investors’ minds regarding the potential financial and social impact of the opportunities. The pitch event was followed by a happy hour and networking event at the Exchange with development partners and members of the Addis Ababa business community.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/econ_tourism_feb_20171_6f33f487d4.jpg"></figure>Throughout the trip, the group experienced Ethiopia’s rich history, culture and delicious cuisine. During the first day, the entire group went on a sightseeing tour of Addis Ababa, took a look back in history with a stop at the National Museum of Ethiopia, home of the infamous <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucy_(Australopithecus)">Lucy skeleton</a>, and went on a food and drink tour with local food guides from <a href="http://goaddistours.com/">Go Addis Tours</a>. Later in the week, Mama Fresh hosted the investors for lunch at their visitor’s center and several members also spent some time exploring <a href="http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/18">Lalibela’s</a> famous 11 monolithic rock-hewn churches.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/econ_tourism_feb_2017_f040b8e0a3.jpg"></figure>RENEW is in the midst of planning the next Econ-Tourism Trip, which is slated for September 17-22, 2017. Contact us to learn more about participating in an upcoming Econ-Tourism Trip!

Members of RENEW’s Impact Angel Network visit Ethiopia to review investment opportunities.

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Angels Descend on Addis!

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Mark Your Calendars!</h1>Matt and Laura Davis, partners of RENEW, will be heading from Ethiopia back to the U.S. to meet with investors across the States and Canada from mid-March through April. They will be traveling to the cities of Washington D.C., New York, Toronto, Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco, Salt Lake City and Denver.We will be hosting informal gatherings in New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Salt Lake City and Denver. The purpose of RENEW’s multi-city visit is to meet with existing members of the Impact Angel Network, foster new connections with potential members and provide an opportunity for members to walk through several of our upcoming investment pipeline deals with the partners.RENEW, along with the members of the Impact Angel Network (IAN), share a vision for changing the way investors view Africa, and the vehicles in which they use to invest in its emerging markets. Many of our members were referred to RENEW and the IAN via word-of-mouth by a trusted friend or colleague, who have in turn shared their experience with others who share in our vision. We are proud of the progress we've made so far, but we're just getting started!Continued growth of our investment pipeline and our investor community go hand-in-hand. If you have time to meet Matt and Laura, or know other like-minded investors in these cities who would be interested in learning more about RENEW, the IAN or our upcoming deals, then please reach out and let us know. We hope to see many of you in the coming weeks!<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/2017_roadshow_2dd8ec2fed.jpg"></figure>

RENEW partners Matt and Laura Davis will be traveling across the U.S. and Canada to meet with investors.

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Mark Your Calendars!

<h1 style="text-align:center;">My Journey of Impact in Ethiopia</h1>Growing up, I don’t remember wishing ‘I want to be a pilot or a doctor’. Being able to fly an airplane or becoming a healing hand is indeed a noble job, and it’s no wonder many children wish to become one. For me, the goal was to lead a balanced and meaningful life, regardless of the career I choose. I grew up in a family that equally emphasized the importance of work, family and friends, and spiritual activities; a philosophy that I wished to continue building in my own life. So when the time came to make a decision in junior high, it was with some concern and a heavy heart that I decided to pursue business school. Would it help me achieve my goal of a balanced and meaningful life? Fast forward 12 years, I am happy to say that it was the right decision, and I would do it all over again.Business school was great, however, it did fall short in preparing me for the real-world challenges after graduation. When I was in my final year, I moonlighted as a sales representative for different companies. One month, I was trying to promote kitchen appliances door-to-door, and the next month I was making hundreds of cold calls to promote a new share company and selling stock. These part-time gigs helped me develop a good work ethic, and helped me understand that the next step after graduation was going to be a hard one. Even so, I honestly thought I would find the perfect job right out the door and be great at it. Little did I know that it would be two years after graduation that I would find a secular career in which I personally believed I could make ‘worthwhile’ contribution.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/berke_blog_b2e2a9f649.jpg"></figure>When I started my finance career seven years ago as junior analyst at one of the leading consulting firms in Ethiopia, I was very excited. I helped develop and review more than 100 business plans, advised many entrepreneurs and businesses on developing and improving their feasibility studies, and developed new and attractive opportunities in different value chains. Great work and a great team! However, I always wondered what happened to those businesses after they received their business plans or expansion strategies. Some would go on and use these plans to make their investment decisions, secure bank loans or attract foreign investment. Most remained frustrated because of their inability to attract financing or execute their business strategies properly. I wondered why some seemingly attractive opportunities did not actually attract investment. When private equity firms started opening in Addis, I knew they held the answers to my questions. So, when I was introduced to RENEW, I knew it was time to ask those questions and figure out if I could do anything about it. It was time for a new challenge to uncover the ‘why’ and assess the facts from the other side of the table. I welcomed the opportunity to join the RENEW team as an analyst with great excitement and anticipation. Three years down the road and at the close of my time with RENEW, while I am happy to say that I have found many answers, I did not think the ride would be filled with so many highs and lows.A day at RENEW is no ordinary day. I start reading emails on my way to the office and reply as soon as I open my computer at my desk. Once morning emails are out the door, it is game on. No day is a routine. Some days are filled with just sourcing, cold calls, meetings with new companies, introducing RENEW, running trainings on private equity, and building and maintaining relationships with companies. Other days are spent at the office creating financial models, conducting market analysis, running working sessions with businesses, drafting annual plans, budgets or strategies, board meetings and coaching sessions. The heat turns up at the office during active pipeline meetings, discussing due diligence findings, drafting terms or term sheet negotiations.Before I joined RENEW, Matt Davis did warn me that ‘this is not a 9am to 5pm job”, and he wasn’t kidding. Finding the right company with the right management team is no easy task. As a native Ethiopian, building bridges between the Western way of doing business and the Ethiopian way is a tiring task. It is not just the difference in language, but translating the different cultures, communication styles, expectations and relationship management between the two extremes is an exercise that sometime leaves me breathless. Most days are exciting and I leave office feeling satisfied, and other days are a little frustrating. Not just because of the hard work with our portfolios or would-be portfolios, but also as a result of changes in government regulations and procedures, barriers to closing our investments or delays in processes. But, as one of our investors always says, “if this was easy, everyone would be doing it”. There is a reason why RENEW is only one of a handful of private equity investment firms operating in Ethiopia’s frontier economy.I believe the diversity within the team in terms of background, education, experience, culture and perception has created the right recipe for learning and success at RENEW. Our focus area, private equity, is an exciting industry in the financial sector of Ethiopia. It’s almost an unchartered territory, full of surprises but rewarding. Investing in small businesses and turning business people into real executives is a satisfying process. Our SME private equity trainings are eye openers, and I always enjoy reading the feedback from the participants. The workshops open new understanding and opportunities, a source of finance and growth. Training participants leave full of excitement and hope, determined to come back after developing their investment plans or business strategies and attract equity financing. I am proud that my career in finance has brought me such an opportunity to impact the local economy and to meet and work with hundreds of businesses in Ethiopia.Today, many children still wish to become a pilot or a doctor, and for good reason. And I am fortunate to have friends who are pilots or health professionals, not because they occasionally bring me stuff from abroad or because I visit them when I feel ill, but because they are great friends and they too do their best to lead an impactful and balanced life. And while I didn’t, like my friends, go through five or more years of school and training, I’ve gained important knowledge through my education, formal trainings and from my bosses and colleagues.Applying the principles that I have learned and helping companies change their ‘business as usual’ approach to management, customer service, and excellence; observing companies come out of their shells and position themselves for growth and greatness - that is what I call a rewarding job. The balance between impact and returns on investment is hard to find. Yet, at RENEW, I enjoyed such a great balance, not only between impact and returns but in personal and spiritual activities as well.What’s next? After testing both sides of the private equity market as a business consultant and portfolio analyst, I think it’s time to see from the eyes of the investor or the entrepreneur. I recently made my first small investment in a small business, and I am leading the efforts to promote the business. Who knows, this could be the start of something new, something exciting, impactful and balanced.

Reflections on the steps that led me to RENEW and what the future has in store.

Perspectives

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My Journey of Impact in Ethiopia

<h1 style="text-align:center;">1,000 Mountains Ahead and Behind</h1>The Africa we know today is not the same Africa our grandparents knew. The continent has changed drastically over the last decade or two, and continues to do so rapidly. What makes this shift interesting is that for so long, most of us in the West loved "helping Africa", but did so in a way that generally took the form of charity, emergency aid or some other method of a providing a handout or a ‘Band-Aid solution’ to a crisis. The possibility of investing in and growing companies, building cities and focusing on sustainable private sector growth was nearly unimaginable.But, here we are in 2017, witnessing rapid development and opportunity before our very eyes, while also reflecting on the incredible growth from the past several decades. Africa has transcended our outdated perspectives of its economy and our aid-centric view of its existence. But while the continent continues moving towards a highly competitive and increasingly industrialized economic position in the world, there still exists a great lack of options for individuals to be part of this story, and capture the vast opportunity which it presents.This is where RENEW comes into play... Years ago we saw this shift occurring. In Africa, there were companies growing bigger than microfinance institutions were equipped to finance, yet were still considered too small and too risky for larger private equity funds to pay attention to. The result was an increasing amount of companies in the $1-2M in sales range with 20-30 employees, but nowhere to turn for the capital required to scale and become $50M companies employing 500 people. In the U.S., we started seeing the rise of compassionate capitalists, philanthropists, individuals, and families who wanted a better and more successful model than straight giving as a way to help; a shift towards investing in companies that create jobs and build economies. However, there was no expertise on the ground to source and manage investments, let alone a vehicle for facilitating the process. RENEW saw the supply and demand, and asked, “how do we connect these dots and turn this into an opportunity?”.The barriers required to realize this vision and overcome its challenges were (and still are!) high – including, but not limited to, information asymmetry, differing business culture and norms, a lack of trust with entrepreneurs and business partners, 7,000 miles of distance, time zone complications, and an enormous gap in understanding and information on both sides. We can confidently say we’ve climbed 1,000 mountains these last five years, and the result is an investment platform called the Impact Angel Network and a growing portfolio of exceptional companies.RENEW and the IAN build companies through an all-inclusive and innovative model: we find, vet, perform due diligence, negotiate, invest in and then actively help them grow (think Shark Tank meets Indiana Jones) by providing technical assistance and consulting in key areas of their business, namely finance, marketing and sales, and governance. We love building great companies in challenging parts of the world where small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are needed most, and we just happen to be an investment firm with one heck of a mission and an unparalleled experience for our investors to boot.So what have we accomplished over the past 5 years? We’ve invested in 7 incredible companies and entrepreneurs, we are supporting over 1,100 jobs and 3,500 smallholder farmers, we are generating export revenue for the country, we’ve attracted an additional $10.3M in financing for the portfolio in Ethiopia, and we’re just getting started.Looking at 2016 in particular, we launched a public-private partnership with the <a href="../2016/accelerating-business-growth-project.html">Canadian government</a> to expand the IAN into Canada and scale up our work in Ethiopia. We opened The Exchange - an amazing business acceleration space where we'll be taking companies through our growth acceleration program and coaching them into becoming market leaders. We’ve learned how to navigate in-country political and civil unrest and technological hurdles and to come back from these experiences stronger and more equipped to deal with future challenges that will surely be faced. We learned the importance of staying the course; because what we're doing - creating jobs - in turn, builds stability and requires our commitment to the vision we’ve laid out. We are a small but growing player in the development of a stable and thriving economy, and it is a robust SME sector that is a hallmark of a thriving economy.So, what do we plan to do in the year ahead? We've got some great investments lined up across multiple priority sectors. We are going to launch multiple training programs at The Exchange, our new space in Ethiopia, and across the country. We will continue working with our portfolio companies to optimize their governance and operations, and increase sales. We will also continue teaching Ethiopian companies the basics of private equity investing by coaching them on how to pitch their companies the larger funds. We're doing some heavy lifting behind the scenes to help build the private equity industry in Ethiopia from the ground up and we couldn’t be more driven! We also plan to implement several new investor experiences for members of the IAN, to continue growing an amazing network of compassionate capitalists, and to host our third annual National Gathering in Washington, DC in October.We truly are excited for what the future has in store and invite you to come on this journey with us in growing companies, building nations and leaving a legacy.

RENEW Celebrates 5 Years of investing in Ethiopia and looks to the future.

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1,000 Mountains Ahead and Behind

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Tebita &amp; WSU: Working Together to Save More Lives</h1>Of the many goals we set out to achieve alongside our portfolio companies and their driven entrepreneurs, such as social impact and financial returns, RENEW and the Impact Angel Network (IAN) also seek to add value to the companies in the form of strategic relationship building.Members of the IAN closed an investment in EAES in May 2015. EAES serves providers of emergency medical services and training in East Africa, Ethiopia in particular, in order to ensure that international and domestic clients have access to reliable, high-quality emergency care. EAES works in partnership with local firms, such as Tebita, by offering business development, procurement, and administrative support. This support drives medical service companies to operate more efficiently and thus, frees them up to focus on their core functions; providing quality medical care for patients in crisis.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/desktop20_e32f0440f8.jpg"></figure>EAES and Tebita, together, aim to improve the quality of and access to emergency healthcare services across Ethiopia and beyond. And now, we’re excited to announce that through RENEW and EAES’ business development efforts, Tebita will have a U.S. partner to assist them in the coming years on their journey to becoming a leader in emergency healthcare and response - <a href="http://www.weber.edu/CHP/EthiopiaEMS.html">Weber State University</a>.In July 2016, Bill Robertson, department chair and assistant professor of emergency medicine at Weber State University (WSU), spent a week in Ethiopia accompanied by Lisa Trujillo, director of clinical education in WSU’s Respiratory Therapy Program. Robertson and Trujillo met with the Kibret Abebe (founder of Tebita) and his team, visited the company’s training center and spoke with the deputy director to the Ethiopian Ministry of Health to discuss the future of EMS in Ethiopia.Robertson and Abebe collaborated on how WSU’s emergency care and rescue department could assist Tebita with developing programs that will further the efforts to establish educational and credentialing standards, and to provide a sustainable workforce of qualified emergency medicine providers for Tebita, as well as other agencies in Ethiopia.“With the development of newer educational technologies, and the ever-increasing availability of broad-band internet capabilities in the developing world, we are able to collaborate with areas of the world such as Ethiopia in offering at least the didactic component of medical education,” Robertson said. “The face-to-face component of medical education that is necessary for skills and hands-on training is still a must, but with the ability to lecture from a distance, the time we spend there in person has become much more practical.”As this relationship between WSU and Tebita continues to flourish, so too will the overall quality of emergency medical care in Ethiopia, leading to the prevention of unnecessary deaths and thousands of more lives saved. And that is a success story we all can get behind!

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Renew Capital Angels invested in East Africa Emergency Services LTD (EAES), which partners with Tebita Ambulance. The company helps ensure that international and domestic clients have access to reliable, high-quality emergency care in Ethiopia. Tebita is the first private-sector ambulance company in Ethiopia.

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EAES.avif

A new partnership that will lead to better emergency care in Ethiopia.

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Tebita & WSU: Working Together to Save More Lives

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Back to the Source: Energy</h1>In July 2013, members from the Impact Angel Network closed an investment in <a href="http://www.dventus.com/">dVentus Technologies PLC</a>, an ISO 9001: 2008 certified high technology company of U.S. origin incorporated in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2010. The investment helped dVentus to design, develop and manufacture smart grid solutions, energy efficient power generation and distribution solutions. dVentus is strategically situated to respond to the needs of the domestic and international markets with solutions specifically targeted for the clean energy, energy efficiency and smart grid technology sectors.Anticipated social impact from this investment includes millions of Ethiopians with access to more reliable, efficient electricity and the increased employment of professional and highly skilled engineering jobs. In fact, the company currently employs more than 85 hardworking, intelligent and extremely talented men and women to work on product concept design, R&amp;D, development and manufacturing in its state-of-the-art facility.&nbsp;The fostering of these bright minds and innovative companies is critical if Ethiopia hopes to achieve its goal to become a middle-income country by 2025 through increased agriculture and industry. A reliable power grid providing adequate sources of electricity to its residents and industries is a reality that Ethiopia needs to quickly put in place.While Ethiopia is equipped with access to vast renewable energy resources and has the potential to generate more than 60,000 megawatts (MW) of electric power from hydroelectric (86%), wind and solar (8%), as well as geothermal sources (6%), the country only has approximately 2,300 MW of installed generation capacity.(1) With a population of over 95 million people and projections suggesting that the total demand for power will grow by 30% per year, the country is facing an electricity deficit.(2) And of Ethiopia's 95 million citizens, about 80% live in rural areas and only 2 million (mainly urban dwellers) have access to electricity distributed by Ethiopian Electric Power’s (EEP) grid.(3) This translates to a meager rate of 23% connectivity for the entire country.(1)<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/usaid_power_africa_graphic_545f437012.png"></figure>It will come as no surprise then that Ethiopia ranks 159th out of 190 countries in the World Bank’s <a href="http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/ethiopia/">Ease of Doing Business 2017 Report</a>, and in their <a href="http://www.enterprisesurveys.org/data/exploreeconomies/2015/Ethiopia">2015 Enterprise Survey</a>, electricity was ranked as the second highest business environment obstacle for firms. The major constraints of the power sector in Ethiopia are inadequacy of supply, poor quality of supply, poor customer service, lack of trained labor and lack of finance.(3) However, there is a clear political will in Ethiopia to ensure the fulfillment of the development goals in the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP), as the power sector has been identified as a key in achieving these goals.Under the first GTP, the Government of Ethiopia intends to increase generation capacity to 10,000 MW upon the completion of two major hydropower plants set to become operational in 2017 and 2018.(1) The second GTP has a new, equally ambitious target to increase generation capacity to over 17,000 MW by 2020, with an overall potential of 35,000 MW by 2037.(1) This increase in generation capacity would help sustain the economic growth Ethiopia has experienced and enable it to become a regional renewable energy hub in East Africa.Assisting Ethiopia in achieving its goals under GTP is the Power Africa initiative, a multi-partner program launched by President Obama in 2013. Power Africa’s goals are to increase electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa by adding more than 30,000 megawatts of cleaner, more efficient electricity generation capacity and 60 million new home and business connections.(1) Power Africa is supporting Ethiopia’s energy goals through wide-ranging technical assistance in cooperation with the government of Sweden and Norway, the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, European Commission, the UN, and DFID.(1) However, Ethiopia is not only looking to the public sector for assistance in developing its energy sector, but also to private investors who are seeking attractive financial and social returns, like the Impact Angel Network.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/bts_dventus_c693df3693.jpg"></figure>According to EEP, "the opportunities in the power sector represent about $3 to $4 billion per year. Of this, 65% is in generation, with the rest spread across transmission, universal access and engineering services."(3) The long-term goal is to maximize the country’s energy power potential, one that dVentus fully supports through its products and service offerings.dVentus’ portfolio of products includes smart electric meters, smart water meters, system solutions, generators and converters, and their service offerings range from electric power and water analysis to system design and smart grid upgrades, all in the effort to assist Ethiopia and the world beyond in sustainably powering enterprise and economic development.RENEW and the IAN are proud to be a part of dVentus’ story.

An overview and analysis of one of the key ingredients that drive many of dVentus’ product lines.

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Back to the Source: Energy

<h1 style="text-align:center;">The Best of 2016</h1>The RENEW team wishes you all a happy New Year! As 2017 is newly minted and we look to the future, the RENEW team would like to take a moment and reflect on some of our favorite (and most popular) thought-content pieces of 2016:The Rise of Private Equity in East Africa: This is an analysis of the current state and future state of private equity in the East Africa region, as well as the country of Ethiopia. This content piece examines the regional trends from the previous seven years, looks at the prospects of growth in private equity investment in Ethiopia, and explains how the rise of the global impact investor plays an integral role in this investment.Never Forget Africa: RENEW experienced some exciting growth this year by expanding our team, including Justin Reesor, our Operations Manager. In his introductory blog, Justin tells the story of his journey to RENEW, which started as a promise he made to himself during a college cross-cultural trip to South Africa to ‘Never Forget Africa’. Read Justin’s inspiring blog, and don't forget to check out <a href="../2016/going-against-grain.html">Tristan Pelham-Webb</a> or <a href="../2016/africa-final-frontier.html">Prasoon Raghuwanshi’s</a> equally compelling personal stories as well.10 Things You Should Know About Ethiopia's Business Environment: The World Bank published its 2015 Enterprise Survey on Ethiopia, which outlines some very interesting information about the biggest obstacles private sector companies face in Ethiopia. The RENEW team compiled 10 key takeaways, focusing our analysis on the outliers – indicators that differed significantly in Ethiopia compared to the general region of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Some of the findings may come as a surprise so be sure to <a href="/newsroom/10-things-you-should-know-about-ethiopias-business-environment">read more</a>.Member of the IAN Visit Ethiopia: 2016 kicked off with an exciting start! In mid-February, RENEW hosted an Econ-Tourism Trip for members of the Impact Angel Network from San Francisco, Los Angeles and Minneapolis. The group met with many Ethiopian entrepreneurs, from both RENEW’s portfolio and investment pipeline, and visited a number of businesses in and around Addis Ababa. Read more about their experience and consider joining us this upcoming February 2017 for our annual Econ-Tourism trip!UHNW Millennials and Impact Investing: Impact investing is gaining popularity across all generations, and none more so than with millennials, who are expected to inherit some $59 trillion in the coming decades. In this content piece, the RENEW team takes a closer look at what UHNW millennials value most, as well as the interactions between millennials, their parents and their advisors.Read more or tune into RENEW's Investing On The Frontier podcast on millennials.<figure class="image image-style-align-right"><img src="/uploads/2016_feb_econ_tourism_bd05a0e087.jpg"></figure>

The RENEW team reflects on our favorite and most popular content pieces from 2016.