<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/blog_whitney_d681aaf50b.jpg"></figure><h1 style="text-align:center;">I Had a Farm in Africa...</h1>RENEW and the Impact Angel Network lost a dear friend and member this week. Whitney Ball, the founder of DonorsTrust, passed away on Monday, August 17, 2015 after a long and valiant battle with cancer.Her organization, DonorsTrust, is a donor-advised fund and community foundation that works on promoting “free society as understood in America's founding documents” according to the organization’s website. Whitney joined the Impact Angel Network in 2013 and participated in RENEW’s Econ-Tourism trip to Ethiopia that year. She later participated with the network in investing in several of our companies, including Metad, a specialty coffee farm in the Yirgacheffe region of Ethiopia.Whitney once told us that one of her dreams in life was to be able to live out the well-known quote by Karen Blixen in her famous book, Out of Africa, "I had a farm in Africa…”We miss you Whitney. We are honored to be part of fulfilling one of your life’s dreams.Read more about <a href="http://www.donorstrust.org/AboutUs/News/RememberingWhitneyBall.aspx">the life and legacy of Whitney Ball</a> on the DonorsTrust website.

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I Had a Farm in Africa...

<h1 style="text-align:center;">A Typical Monday in Addis Ababa</h1>5:30 AM – I would like to say it was the smell of Ethiopian coffee that first wakes me each day in Addis Ababa, but it’s often the prayers of the nearby churches that break into my morning grogginess. The delicious Arabica coffee my husband, Matt, brings me does partially make up for the multitude of early morning sound intrusions.6 AM – It’s time to get moving and exercise. I can’t believe I am going to out myself here, but Jillian Michaels exercise videos are ideal for the constraints of life in Addis Ababa. It’s not nearly as glamorous as a run in Washington D.C.’s Rock Creek Park, but just 20 minutes later, I’m ready to face the day. Mission accomplished.6:50 AM - I’m out the door and heading to the office. Any later and the traffic in Addis can be unbearable. Rush hour traffic in any city can be chaotic, and Ethiopia is certainly no exception. Matt and I have a deal that if it's later than 7:00 AM when we depart, it's my turn to drive. Even at 7:10 AM, the blue taxi vans that are locally referred to as “blue donkeys”, which carry much of the Addis’ population to work, are already starting to block two to three lanes of traffic, turning a 10 minute commute into a 30 minute drive. Real donkeys are also notorious for being in the way and part of every day street life in Addis, so the idea of a cumbersome blue donkey is both humorous and appropriate.7:15 AM - I arrive at the office and start catching up on emails from the U.S. that piled up across the time zones. My work with our U.S. team focuses on our international operations, investor management, marketing and working with our portfolio distribution companies.9 AM – The <a href="../../about-renew/team.html">Ethiopia team</a> priorities meeting takes place. Every Monday, the Ethiopia team gets together like clockwork, to go over the priorities for the coming week. This week’s highlights: closing one investment; getting a bank loan in the works to close another; finalizing our dates for our upcoming investor Econ-Tourism trips; and beginning our analysis of two new opportunities for our next investment package.9:30 AM – Climb into RENEW’s Toyota Vitz to drive across town to one of our portfolio company’s offices. Driving isn’t something I relish in Addis, so I love it when a team member takes the wheel.10 AM – It's the first 120 days of our investment in East Africa Emergency Services (EAES), so we intensively meet with the management team to work on the company’s priorities including branding, marketing, business planning, budgeting and good old fashioned sales.11:30 AM – Drive from EAES to Mama Fresh. Fingers crossed that we won’t hit any traffic jams or be stopped by a diplomatic mission going to or from Bole International Airport. With the Africa Union in Addis Ababa, this is one thing that the city has in common with my home city in the U.S., Washington, D.C. There is always someone important going somewhere important.Noon – Attend a board meeting at Mama Fresh. We are working on updating the budget, reviewing financial controls, devising marketing strategies, etc. The company has many opportunities in front of them and the next few months will be exciting. And of course, a lunch at Mama Fresh is always a tasty affair. The Mama Fresh team jokes about how I consistently schedule my meetings around the lunch hour. Hmm, no surprise there - you should always “Dance with your fingers. Eat Ethiopian."2 PM – I catch up on team emails and work on improving systems around our company management efforts. Some would think this is boring work, but we are proving a new model and it’s time to start thinking about scaling to new countries. Kaizen.3:30 PM – This marks the beginning of several meetings with the U.S. team to connect about investor management, company operations and marketing. I love the creativity we get to use around the investor experience. We consistently work to improve current efforts and to implement new ideas that deliver our Ethiopian portfolio companies' amazing stories to the real heroes of this narrative – the investors of the Impact Angel Network. Not every day is so full of meetings, but a few days out of the week are. In working across time zones, Skype has indeed become our best friend.5 PM – Active pipeline meeting begins. During this time, we have the Ethiopia team and U.S. team all together to discuss the latest on new deals that have come across our desks, as well as to provide updates on our progress in structuring and closing investments.7:30 PM – Drinks with friends or partners at one of the hotels in Addis. We tend to end up at the Sheraton or the Radisson, two establishments that provide nicely predictable service.9:30 PM – It’s popcorn time! One of the things I cherish about Ethiopia is the population’s love affair with popcorn, or fantasia - as it is locally known in Amharic. Now, when I order some at a hotel or local restaurant without ordering buna (coffee) as well, they look at me like I am crazy. But regardless, it’s readily available for consumption at home or anywhere they are performing a <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/newsroom/Out%20and%20About%20in%20Ethiopia%20%20The%20Coffee%20Ceremony">coffee ceremony.</a>Come see us in Addis sometime. We promise we’ll keep the team meetings to a minimum and will take you around to meet the companies and entrepreneurs involved in Ethiopia’s vibrant economy.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/day_in_the_life_blog_collage_ee75f12018.jpg"></figure>

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A Typical Monday in Addis Ababa

<h1>Portfolio Accomplishments</h1>Since opening the RENEW office in Ethiopia in 2012, the Impact Angel Network (IAN) has made four investments in East Africa. Be sure to look for several exciting announcements of new investments in the coming weeks! In the meantime, RENEW is proud to report on the accomplishments our portfolio companies have made in East Africa.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/dventus_0_b733eb1008.jpg"></figure>dVentus continues to make strides in building its local capacity and in new product development. The company has successfully designed and built a prototype and system for smart meters to improve the reliability, security and efficiency of African and Middle Eastern power grids and is now working on certifying the prototype to customer’s specifications. Since the IAN made it’s investment in dVentus, the company has increased the number of individuals employed by approximately 21%.METAD AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT PLC<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/metad_0_77c8a43e2f.jpg"></figure>METAD continues its preparation for the 2015 coffee harvest season, which begins in November. At the Hambela farm, the farm workers are clearing additional land for more planting, fertilizing the soil and drilling wells for the nursery. METAD continues to support local small farmers by purchasing their coffee crops or by providing technical training on coffee farming best practices to ensure the region is growing coffee is a sustainable and ecologically mindful way. METAD is also actively using its coffee laboratory to generate brand recognition and revenue. Since the lab’s opening, METAD has cupped 70 varieties of coffee for global firms and has also been training local and international cuppers.In 2014, METAD adopted a school of 478 students in Hambela. They have provided school uniforms to the students, purchased benches and tables and increased the teachers’ salaries by 50%. METAD has plans to increase the number of students it is supporting for the next school year, which starts in September 2015. METAD also hired additional teachers for the school and began paying their full salaries.MAMA FRESH INJERA PLC<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/mama_fresh_1_0126eb5815.jpg"></figure>Mama Fresh is making strides in increasing operational capacity and certifications with the ongoing implementation of good manufacturing practices in partnership with a Fortune 500 food company. The company continues to source raw materials from more than 300 rural farmers. Mama Fresh is exploring additional U.S. markets in the coming months with new, innovative Ethiopian food products.EAST AFRICA EMERGENCY SERVICES LTD<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/eaes_3b497f767a.jpg"></figure>RENEW and the IAN closed the investment in East Africa Emergency Services LTD (EAES) in May 2015. Since closing the investment, RENEW and EAES has been partnering with an Ethiopian company, Tebita Ambulance and Pre-Hospital Emergency Medical Service PLC’s (TEBITA), on a long-term business plan and strategy to position the company for growth.In June 2015, the company finalized the purchase of three additional ambulances and other equipment to respond to growing demand for company’s emergency medical services. Two of the new ambulances will serve clients in remote areas and one ambulance will service peace of mind clients in Addis Ababa. The company also opened a training center in Addis Ababa, providing increased capacity for first aid training of non-health professionals and emergency response training for health professionals. During the last quarter, TEBITA provided training services to several international organizations.We are proud to be a part of our portfolio companies' impact stories.

Read about our portfolio companies' second quarter achievements.

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Portfolio Accomplishments

<figure class="image image-style-align-center"><img src="/uploads/photo_2_3_338a22f9f6.jpg"></figure><h1 style="text-align:center;">Exporting Entrepreneurship and Innovation</h1>I had the honor of speaking on a panel at the <a href="https://www.un.int/kenya/news/2015-global-entrepreneurship-summit-ges-nairobi-kenya-25-26-july-2015">Global Entrepreneurship Summit</a> (GES) in Nairobi, Kenya, July 25 and 26, 2015. The energy in Nairobi was high for several reasons, including, of course, the presence of the President of the United States Barack H. Obama, “a son of Kenya” as the local newspapers like to call him. It was the first time a sitting U.S. president visited the country.More than a thousand entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem partners from around the world woke up before dawn on Saturday morning and traveled to the United Nations compound in Nairobi to await his arrival. During the hours of waiting inside the auditorium at the compound, I was honored to sit with Lesa Mitchell (<a href="http://instigating.co/">Instigating+co.</a>), Philip Auerswald (author of <a href="http://auerswald.org/">The Coming Prosperity</a>, professor at George Mason University, and co-chair of the <a href="http://www.gern.co/">Global Entrepreneurship Research Network</a>), and Derek White (Chief Design and Digital Officer for <a href="http://www.barclaysaccelerator.com/location-london.html">Barclays Accelerator</a>). Jim Sorensen, the Utah founder of the <a href="http://sgiicenter.com/">SGII Center</a>, and <a href="http://www.coons.senate.gov/">U.S. Senator Christopher Coons</a>, a leader in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, were close by. What a pleasure it was to engage intellectual thought leaders regarding topics such as the bitcoin and blockchain movements, electronic intellectual property rights, the experience economy, and most importantly, entrepreneurship, as we awaited the founder of the summit, President Obama.<figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="/uploads/photo_2_1_1_0_42b94805cd.jpg"></figure>In the days leading up to GES, I also participated in two wonderful events organized in part by <a href="http://www.vilcap.com/">Village Capital</a>: “Pitch for Impact”, hosted by <a href="http://casefoundation.org/">The Case Foundation</a>, SGII Center and the <a href="http://www.doen.nl/web/about-DOEN/About-the-DOEN-Foundation.htm">DOEN Foundation</a>, and “Celebrating Entrepreneurship”, hosted by the Case Foundation and Barclays. Both events provided additional opportunities to experience the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Nairobi, including <a href="http://www.ihub.co.ke/">iHUB</a> and scores of entrepreneurs and other investors (be sure to check out <a href="http://www.barclaysafrica.com/barclaysafrica/Supply-Chain-Challenge">#BarlcaysAfricaChallenge</a>).<figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="/uploads/photo_3_1_253c5233ca.jpg"></figure>it was the first time I had participated in GES, and I left Nairobi reinvigorated about America’s role in the world. The President made a commitment six years ago to, in summary, export the American spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation – now this is something I can support! From my world in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and my travels around the globe, it has become clear to me that promoting entrepreneurship is key for the United States to maintain, and perhaps in some places even regain, our diplomatic relevance. During the past year, President Obama even named several <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2015/05/11/meet-president-obamas-entrepreneurship-ambassadors/">U.S. Ambassadors for Entrepreneurship</a>, including ABC’s Shark Tank favorite, <a href="http://daymondjohn.com/">Daymond John</a>, who I had the pleasure of meeting briefly. Ambassadors for Entrepreneurship - what a great idea!<figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="/uploads/photo_4_69bbe8c74d.jpg"></figure>Thanks to some of our partners at <a href="http://www.usaid.gov/">USAID</a>, I was asked to sit on an angel investing and crowdfunding panel. The panel was wonderfully moderated by Michael Ducker of <a href="http://jeaustin.com/about/">J.E. Austin Associates, Inc.</a> It also included Rich Hoops, a quintessential example of an angel investor, Hossam Allam, who leads the <a href="http://www.cairoangels.com/">Cairo Angels</a>, and Cecile Watson, who is pioneering a Caribbean crowdfunding platform called <a href="http://pitchandchoose.com/">Pitch and Choose</a>. It was a great, diverse panel that engaged audience of 80+ entrepreneurs and investors, including Suzanne Biegle of <a href="http://www.clearlysocialangels.com/">Clearly Social Angels</a>, Dan Awendo of <a href="http://www.investeqcapital.com/">Investeq Capital</a>, and Ben White of <a href="https://vc4africa.biz/">VC4Africa</a>.As President Obama instructed in closing the summit, “Go out and start something.” And when you do, persist and persist and persist in your vision until you change the world around you.

Laura Davis attends the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit.

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Exporting Entrepreneurship and Innovation

<h1 style="text-align:center;">RENEW to Participate in the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit</h1>This week, one of RENEW’s founding partners, Laura Davis, will be speaking on a panel on Crowdfunding and Angel Investing at the 6th Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES). This important event is to be held in Nairobi, Kenya from July 25 to 26. According to the U.S. government, the summit will be a “gathering of entrepreneurs at all stages of business development, business leaders, mentors, and high-level government officials.”*<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/ges_logo_47154ab1b2.png"></figure>RENEW is excited to be a part of the president’s initiative to generate new investment in entrepreneurs around the world, by not only attending this event, but also by facilitating impact investments in small to medium sized enterprises in Ethiopia. President Obama will be traveling to Ethiopia after the close of the summit, which will mark the first time in U.S. history that a sitting president will have visited the country.Immediately prior to GES, Laura will also be participating in discussions surrounding women and local entrepreneurship alongside Village Capital, Steve and Jean Case of the <a href="http://casefoundation.org/">Case Foundation</a>, and Jim Sorenson of the <a href="http://sgiicenter.com/">SGII Center</a>.

Laura Davis to speak on a panel at the 6th annual gathering in Nairobi, Kenya.

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RENEW to Participate in the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Impact Angel Network Joins the Angel Capital Association</h1>RENEW is proud to announce that the Impact Angel Network recently became a member of the Angel Capital Association (ACA), the "largest angel professional development organization in the world."*<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/acamemberlogo_forweb_1_0_6b71dcafa6.jpg"></figure>According to information provided by the group, <a href="http://www.angelcapitalassociation.org/">ACA</a> is a trade association focused on fueling the success of accredited angel investors and portfolio companies in high-growth, early-stage ventures. ACA acts as a voice in the angel industry, providing comprehensive services in support of members working in angel groups. ACA provides professional development, public policy advocacy and significant benefits and resources to its membership of more than 12,000 individual accredited investors in 220 angel groups and platforms.As part of our membership with ACA, the Impact Angel Network is also now rolling out its new investment pipeline management tool through Gust, “a global SaaS funding platform for the sourcing and management of early-stage investments.”** This online platform gives savvy entrepreneurs the ability to collaborate with informed individual investors and angel investor networks by “virtually supporting all aspects of the investment relationship, from initial pitch to successful exit.”It is our belief that these new platforms will provide even more unforgettable experiences for members of the Impact Angel Network and allow RENEW to better focus on our mission – to grow companies, help build nations and leave important legacies.

The largest angel professional development organization in the world.

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Impact Angel Network Joins the Angel Capital Association

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Looking Through A New Lens</h1>RENEW believes Ethiopia and other developing economies are rife with opportunity for investment. Early adopters on both small and large scales agree – and have already <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/rock-star-bob-geldof-spearheads-u-s-private-equity-push-into-ethiopia-1427706330">acted on</a> these beliefs by investing in these budding economies. RENEW and the Impact Angel Network just made their fourth investment since opening RENEW’s Ethiopia office in 2013, and are set to close another investment soon.Despite this upward trajectory of investing in developing economies, many investors are still squeamish when they hear ‘Africa’ and ‘investment’ in the same sentence. While investing in frontier markets can be a challenging endeavor, with potential risks of inflation, currency depreciation, political instability, natural disasters and other uncertainties associated with developing countries, the social impact and opportunities to create financial returns are great.So how can impact investment advisory firms help Western investors to see Africa as a land of opportunity and to become comfortable with investing in frontier markets?THE SOLUTIONRENEW strives to provide the members of the Impact Angel Network an unforgettable investment experience. In order to achieve this goal and address the very real challenges that investing in developing countries bring, RENEW's team provides full on-the-ground support to investors looking to invest in frontier markets, but who typically do not have the local presence to source, conduct due diligence and monitor their investments on their own. The majority of RENEW’s team works in our Addis Ababa office in Ethiopia, full-time, to maintain a presence on-the-ground. We believe this component is crucial to the success of investments in frontier economies.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/econ_tourism_2015_overview_solution_collage_ebe839ff1f.jpg"></figure>RENEW tailors the investment experience to our members' specific needs. Investors are encouraged to travel to Ethiopia and participate in an Econ-Tourism trip, during which they can meet with entrepreneurs, tour their facilities and see the current state of the businesses first-hand. This experience provides investors with the chance to gain a better understanding of the economic and investment environment in Ethiopia. This in turn allows our members to invest with confidence, knowing that RENEW is selecting high-growth potential companies, properly vetting the entrepreneurs and managing all investments post-closing.THE OUTCOMEInvestors are usually surprised to see so much development, growth and opportunity in Ethiopia. They notice signs of a rising middle class and are encouraged by the wonderful people they meet who want to work and build their country into an economic powerhouse. Our investors see first-hand the desires of Ethiopians to work and partner with U.S. investors, and the wide range of sectors in which to invest, from manual labor to technology.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/econ_tourism_2015_overview_outcomes_collage_0_d2c06f0b5f.jpg"></figure>As Econ-Tourism trip participants speak with Ethiopian entrepreneurs, they often comment about the positive attitudes and drive of the management teams they meet, the signs pointing to growth in the agriculture, healthcare, energy, and technology sectors, and the work of the companies to improve the lives of employees. &nbsp;

How impact investment advisory firms can change the way Western investors see Africa.

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Looking Through A New Lens

<h1 style="text-align:center;">Why Are Angel Investors Important?</h1>On June 30th, RENEW provided a private equity training for the World Bank’s Ethiopia Climate Innovation Center (ECIC), an initiative that “supports Ethiopian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that are developing innovative solutions to address climate change challenges”. The training provided an introduction to private equity, with the goal of familiarizing ECIC entrepreneurs with equity mechanisms for raising funds.<figure class="image"><img src="/uploads/img_1970_e405ad70c7.jpg"></figure>One such mechanism is through angel investing. Private equity angel investors (like members of RENEW’s <a href="https://www.renewcapital.com/investing">Impact Angel Network</a>) provide SMEs much-needed access to investment capital and business expertise, as well as access to new markets and foreign partners. This in turn allows companies to scale at a much faster rate than they would be able to do on their own. And while changes to the structure and management of the company are to be expected (such as the implementation of an advisory board), the relationship aims to ultimately provide long-term growth potential and stability to the company.Overall, the training was a success with around 20 entrepreneurs in attendance. At the end of the training, participants came away with a better understanding of private equity, why it is important for entrepreneurs who are looking to expand their company’s operations, and the essential role of angel investors.If you are interested in additional information about RENEW or an upcoming private equity training, please contact us at <a href="mailto:renew@renewcapital.com">renew@renewcapital.com</a> to learn more.

RENEW provides private equity training in Ethiopia to discuss.

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Why Are Angel Investors Important?

<h1 style="text-align:center;">The Next Big Thing in Gluten-Free Foods</h1> The world is catching on: CNN recently highlighted <a href="http://www.mama-fresh.com/">Mama Fresh</a>, one of RENEW’s portfolio companies, during it’s weekly show Inside Africa. According to <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/travel/why-your-next-food-porn-will-come-from-ethiopia/">CNN</a>, this show “highlights the true diversity of the continent as seen through the prism of different cultures and religions and the mediums of art, music, travel and literature.”* It comes as no surprise then that Inside Africa, and its host, Soni Methu, highlighted Ethiopia’s rich and flavorful cuisine, with one of the focal points of the episode being teff - an ancient, nutrient-rich and gluten-free grain native to Ethiopia.Teff can be eaten in a variety of ways, including being used as the main ingredient in an Ethiopian staple bread product, injera. To make injera, teff grain is first ground into flour, then combined with water, allowed to ferment over several days, and finally baked into a spongy, unique and sourdough-like flatbread that is enjoyed with other meats and spices at every meal.Mama Fresh is the country’s largest commercial manufacturer and exporter of fresh-baked injera. Hailu Tessema, the founder and owner of Mama Fresh, is profiled in the episode (click on the photo below and jump to one minute, four seconds to see the segment on Mama Fresh) explaining the process of making injera at a commercial level, and the unique spin that Mama Fresh has given this classic Ethiopian food.<figure class="image"><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/travel/why-your-next-food-porn-will-come-from-ethiopia/"><img src="/uploads/blog_11d60d4684.png"></a></figure><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/travel/why-your-next-food-porn-will-come-from-ethiopia/">Story By Colin Hancock and Daisy Carrington, for CNN</a> &nbsp;

How teff and Mama Fresh are contributing to the latest food craze.