It has been quite an ordeal to figure out how we can allign with an NGO (Non Governmental Organization) in Africa. As Louis explained in last weeks blog posting, there is a significant import tax savings if there is an NGO in Burkia Faso that is the importer of the farm equipment.
We networked with as many people and organizations as we could, this included..
- Contacting the US Embassy in Burkina Faso
- Contacting the former US Ambassidor to Burkina Faso, he has a Minnesota connection
- Seeking help from work colleagues at Cargill Cotton, as they source cotton in Burkina Faso
- Asking a Cargill colleague who is from neighboring Niger, to network with his friend who works with NGO’s in Niger
- Seeing if we could leverage Cargill’s connection with CARE, (www.care.org) a leading humanitarian organization.
Finally we got some positive discussions with 2 NGO’s !! These 2 NGO’s are
- Food for the Hungry (www.fh.org). This connection was made through our partners at Matter.
- Africare (www.africare.org). Mark worked his network, and was connected with Africare through a former professor.
Both of these NGO’s are willing to work with us. Now we are are in the process of selecting the best fit. Both have different arrangements and costs that we are trying to come to grips with. The end goal will be selecting an NGO partner to ensure best success for our project !!
More to come.
