Social Enterprise Does More
If the United Nations was fully funded, why would we need the Arc or social enterprise?
My answer to that question would sound a little something like, “because…
The UN is about solving disadvantaged groups’ problems, but social enterprise is about giving them the tools to solve them themselves.
The UN is about saving lives, but social enterprise is about providing a way of life.
The UN is about countries and governments and international crises and humanitarian issues, but social enterprise is about people.
The UN does, but social enterprise does more.”
Ethiopia Arc Initiative Image by the Sauder School of Business
It is something that I see so evidently as I browse through these Arc success stories. The Arc takes the time to review each business’ issues and circumstances, placing students at the core of the business as interns, researchers, and consultants. And these students are those with the right business experience, the right business skills, and the right passion about making a difference in these communities—something that is more difficult to see in UN missions. The workshops that are facilitated by the Arc members educate entrepreneurs about finance, marketing, and strategy, and these skills allow the entrepreneurs to evaluate and make important decisions regarding their businesses. For example, in Rwanda, the government was seeking to invest in small-to-medium businesses, but was not confident such businesses would take full advantage of their funding. However, through the Rwandan Arc Initiative, entrepreneurs now have the ability to optimize and grow given their resources.
The Arc is very much like new life in the local population, which brings about new perspectives and new purposes. In this way, I see the Arc as a program that starts with the individual but ends up with the creation of communities—ones in which entrepreneurs collaborate with other entrepreneurs, local civilians, and the government in order to adapt, advance, and flourish.