Decision Maker’s Boulevard

From SHIFT Enterprise Academy

Hundreds attend as Africa Center for Economic Dialogue concludes fifth year of festivals and sessions

SHIFT Enterprise Academy was on full display at the Entebbe International Business Summit on March 14 -15 in Entebbe, Uganda. Our Founder, introduced SHIFT Forward Centers while also bringing the audience up to speed on SHIFT’s progress in the East African Community thus far.

The event featured such guests as Uganda’s Minister of Commerce and Trade, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Uganda, and Robinah Nanyunja, a project funding facilitator and President of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum Africa (WEFA).

Over 40 entrepreneurs showcased their products and services including Mumken Travel and Tourism, Akimimat Coffee, and I-Strive Marketplace. This is the fifth year of the Entebbe International Business Summit.

Read the full summit recap on our website’s blog

SHIFT Enterprise Academy in collaboration with Brisby Development Services is happy to introduce our inaugural physical development project, SHIFT Forward Centers in Uganda. This marks a significant milestone in our mission to design projects that lead to economic growth and prosperity across East Africa.

With a primary focus on early-stage business incubation of enterprises within the agriculture supply chain and cutting-edge research and development into robotics for industry, our Forward Centers are destinations positioned as regional hubs for innovation and entrepreneurship.

These sites will be strategically situated to leverage regional trade routes taking advantage of the Africa Free Trade Area. Ultimately SHIFT is seeking to enhance economic mobility while elevating household incomes through our suite of programs and ‘theory of change', The SHIFT Approach.

A cornerstone objective of these endeavors is to attract foreign direct investment, in a responsible way that is conducive to the growth and development of businesses and individuals within the broader SHIFT ecosystem.

Moreover, each phase of land and property development undertaken by our development partner, Brisby Development Services will yield substantial socio-economic benefits, generating over 1000 temporary jobs during the planning and construction phases, and 500 permanent positions as a direct or indirect result of the Forward Center.

Notably, these opportunities will offer competitive wages ranging from 1M to 8M monthly, significantly exceeding Uganda's median income of 220K UGX.

In line with our commitment to long term growth, SHIFT remains steadfast in aligning with national and regional governance policies, including Uganda's Parish Development Model, which underscores the importance of community-led development initiatives.

As we begin the next chapter of our incredible story, we invite you to join us in shaping a future defined by innovation, prosperity, and collective progress.

Forward Centers present alluring Impact Investment Opportunities

Do you want to expand your investment portfolio into East Africa?

Do you own 20+ acres of land or more within the East African community?

Are you interested in passive rental income?

Discover a compelling investment opportunity with the SHIFT Forward Center, a pioneering initiative poised to help lead East Africa's land use and business development landscape into the next frontier.

With SHIFT Venture’s strategic focus on incubating high-potential early stage companies within the agribusiness supply chain, each center offers investors the chance to capitalize on high growth enterprises within a key regional industry.

Additionally, seize the opportunity to diversify your portfolio by investing in our innovative property development projects, leveraging prime real estate opportunities for long-term gains.

We are also open to exploring joint venture opportunities tailored to maximize returns while designing for sustainable economic development.

Join us at the forefront of innovation and investment in East Africa's thriving market, where prudence meets the opportunity for lucrative returns.

Contact Us for a formal presentation and introductory dialogue or access to due diligence documents.

Forward Centers are a realization of “The Founder’s Vision” - December 2022.

NuNu Fund expands its service area, now providing school fee support to 12,000 Ugandan youths

In April 2023, SHIFT launched a new program called SHIFT Ventures, which serves as a pilot incubation program for early stage businesses throughout East Africa. Our first cohort, nicknamed “The Hyenas” due to the nature of SHIFT evolving right alongside these early stage companies featured nine ventures.

One of venture is a unique ‘spend now save now’ business model called NuNu Fund. Founded by Albert Rwakimari, NuNu Fund’s model allows parents to save small increments of money as they buy regular household items at member shops and stores in the Kabale District of Western Uganda. Those savings are then placed in a pool.

Through this savings pool, NuNu invests the money and ultimately is able to use the gains to assist parents with paying school fees. NuNu seized every opportunity presented by SHIFT as well as other accelerator programs, and was able to secure funding to expand its offerings in a true illustration of personal initiative

These small steps are evidence of the interdependency it takes to get from where you are now to where you want to be in the future.

SHIFT Ventures is poised to launch its second exploratory cohort “The Merchants” in 2Q24.

Learn more about SHIFT Ventures on our YouTube Channel

SiSi creates job in its path to launching in Kenya

A second project nurtured by SHIFT in the past 12 months is SiSi, a distinctive GIS tool under development by Kenyan software developer, Ochieng Odhiambo. Ochieng, an experienced entrepreneur, successfully secured funding for SiSi, enabling him and his team to recruit additional developers in anticipation of the software's official launch later this year.

Ochieng regularly participated in SHIFT training sessions. Combining his personal drive and clear goals, he is creating a product that will map small shop owners through an innovative advertising approach based on Nairobi's neighborhood divisions.

Nairobi's urban layout resembles that of Chicago, Illinois, USA, with numerous unique neighborhoods contributing to the character of Kenya's capital city. We are eager to witness the evolution of SiSi.

SHIFT's venture studio will be situated at the Forward Center locations, offering shared office spaces and continuous educational and mentoring support to ventures within our growing business framework and ecosystem.

Texas A&M University, one of the United States leading institutions of higher education highlighted Founder Ethan Brisby in its Association of Former Student Highlight Series earlier this year. Brisby earned a Master’s degree in Land & Property Development from A&M.

You can listen to the lively interview below.

Learning Opportunity

A unique podcast opportunity is the interview we conducted with P Eugene Jackson, who spent 42 years working as a NASA contractor.

During our session, Jackson shared key insights about making history as one of the only living people to work on the original Space Shuttle, Space Constellation Suite, and the International Space Station.

Now in retirement, Jackson is pursuing opportunities to teach and train young people on the African continent about robotics and aerospace engineering.

Listen to his informative presentation about working on each of these historical space programs and then sit back as he and Ethan converse about his life and plans for the future.

The pillars of SHIFT: Save your money, Help your family, Imagine your goals, Follow directions, and Think accurately are guide posts for my life since 2011. They unconsciously are leading me and in turn the SHIFT community into our next galactic phase of development.

For some time, I struggled with the monetization and appropriate corporate structure of this social enterprise, because to me, SHIFT is a ministry. It’s my gift to the world.

However, my current reality on the ground says that SHIFT is a growing multinational organization that needs to generate revenue streams to meet the demands of the problems we address head on with our programs and services.

With this in mind, I recently registered a for-profit arm of our work that will help us realize some of the traditional aspects that “money people” need to see in order to invest or fund some of our largest projects, including the SHIFT Forward Centers discussed today. While we will remain mission-oriented, I understand even more now, it takes “dough” to make “bread.”

I also remain hopeful that the ideals of SHIFT will help to bridge the socioeconomic gaps between Africa and the the greater African diaspora, especially African Americans.

I know fledging programming such as SHIFT Tours, a travel concierge service will help our members experience the natural grace of this land while exploring unique investment opportunities here on the Continent of Africa.

Spend as much time as you need with this latest edition of Decision Maker’s Boulevard. It’s jammed packed with good information designed to breathe life into those we come into contact with.

If this was forwarded to you, be sure to subscribe. Then be sure to forward a copy to three people within your sphere of influence who may be inspired or encouraged by the work of SHIFT Enterprise Academy both at home and abroad.

My best,

Ethan Brisby

Founder, President

SHIFT Enterprise Academy

[email protected] 

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