The United Nations Foundation's AREED (African Rural Energy Enterprise Development) project is helping on two levels: by supporting local enterprises with business development services and seed capital, and by training its local partners in developing countries to apply market principles.
"We are being very conservative about interpreting these rules," said Nancy Kostakos, Wilmer Hale's marketing and business development services director.
Current donor approaches to agricultural development in Africa emphasize the investment climate, marketing infrastructure and business development services, focusing on commercial enterprises and irrigated lands.
It is also true that incubators, which are specialized venture capital shops, have long offered their start-ups a full range of business development services.
Called CRVelocity, the five-month-old project offers these companies an ambitious set of business development services, from computers to consultants, to ease the rocky passage from idea to going concern.
All these factors were considered when Lara Triozzi, president of MarketLauncher, a professional business development services firm in Orlando, Fla., had to choose a contact manager for the company.
The effects of finance interventions have on average been weaker than the effects of entrepreneurship training or business development services.
They plan to help startups with publicity, hiring, operations and other business development services.
They also have no savings and excess resources which they can utilize to get technical, managerial, and other business development services.
In addition to providing business development services to research institutes and biotechnology companies, BRV provides these services to venture capital companies, including early-stage investment opportunities.
