An interview with FEM-START Africa Co-founder Leticia Browne

As part of our series about the awe-inspiring women leading the forefront of FEM-START, we had the pleasure of interviewing Leticia Browne. We discussed investment, Ghana’s growing economy, and the inauguration of FEM-START Africa.

Leticia Browne leads Intelligent Capital, an entrepreneurship development organization that helps foster business opportunities for early-stage entrepreneurs through a multifaceted approach. Throughout her career, Leticia has focused on investment, entrepreneurship, and business management and development. She is the CEO of the Advisory Group on SDGs to the President of Ghana.

How did you become interested in entrepreneurship?

I ran into entrepreneurship when my daughter was very young and I wanted to spend more time at home with her it was then that I realized the opportunity that entrepreneurship can provide you with. The ability to change your economic circumstances and to support your immediate family and your community; I see it as a tool. It can also help with the realization of one’s goals and desires as it sends you on a journey of self-discovery. Through my entrepreneurship support organization, I like to think that I am assisting in the transformation of people’s lives and their development to their full potential.

Did you have a role model when you started off in the world of entrepreneurship, someone that you looked up to for inspiration?

Unfortunately no, I did not. I think that the concept of mentorship was never really introduced to me at a young age, and that is something I try to incorporate into what I do. Having a role model or mentor provides you with the benefit of experience and wisdom. It can really help you to shape your ideas and provide clarity. I always wanted to do something that was beyond what I saw around me, but I did not have any idea how to get there. I believe that, if I had had a mentor much earlier on in life, I could have gotten some insight on how to progress towards my goals, who knows maybe I would have travelled a different road. Not to say that I have regrets, but I definitely feel that mentorship helps you to accelerate and helps you to focus, so I have probably taken a long journey to get where I am.

Do you provide mentorship opportunities for entrepreneurs at Intelligent Capital? 

Yes, but it is organic; it is not a service offering. It is something that inadvertently happens when you are interacting with entrepreneurs and as a result of bringing people into your team who you feel you connect with, and to whom you have some value to add.

Talking about interactions, we understand that as the Director of Intelligent Capital, you help to facilitate the interaction between entrepreneurs and investors. How do you build trust and credibility between these two groups? 

I believe in being authentic in everything that you do. Authenticity always helps to build trust. And that means that if I do not believe in something, I never try to sell it. I never try to pitch something because I think it is trendy. I pitch ideas and work with people that I genuinely believe in. And it’s the same for both sides: the entrepreneur and the investor. I work with people who I feel align with my own values and with whom I have some kind of synergy in terms of what we are trying to achieve. That naturally allows connections to be developed. And over time, people get to see that there is some kind of consistency in the way that you approach things, so they know what to expect from you.

And what are the values that are important to you? 

I believe in transparency, collaboration, and doing things for the greater good. These values are at the centre of the way that we interact with our business partners, my staff, and even in my personal life. I think these three things guide me.

Let us shift our focus to Ghana’s landscape in terms of entrepreneurial ecosystems and start-ups. Ghana was one of the fastest-growing economies in the world prior to COVID-19. What markets or sectors are rapidly growing?

As in most of Africa, we are definitely seeing a lot of activity in Fintech. There is also a focus on climate resilience; entrepreneurs are developing green solutions. But I think these trends are not necessarily specifically related to Ghana, they are a reflection of where money is flowing to. As there is a demand for Fintech solutions and investors have the capital to deploy in this sector, many entrepreneurs are trying to get into this space. We are definitely seeing the ripple effects of what is happening across the continent.

Which markets are investors interested in?

A lot of investors, especially angel investors, are quite interested in tech because the investment lifecycle has been clearly articulated. It really comes down to exit opportunities, the exit strategy for technology companies is clearer, as opposed to more traditional businesses.

Are female entrepreneurs in Ghana also interested in technology, or do you see women starting businesses in other fields?

I see women gravitating towards what they feel comfortable with and what they are passionate about, which is typically fashion, beauty, food, and events. There have been quite a few programs to support women in tech, but I think this is a global push and a global issue. I do not think Ghana is any different from anywhere else.

What challenges do women face when they start a business? Do they face any more challenges compared to their male counterparts? 

In Ghana around 48% of entrepreneurs are women. Ghana is quite a progressive country in terms of gender. Our president is actually the gender champion for the African Union. I would say that access to finance is can be difficult for women, securing a loan from the bank, for instance, as the collateral is often in the name of their husbands. But once again I think that this is a global issue, not a specific Ghanaian challenge.

Usually, the investors are men, which plays a part in this challenge. What do you think we could do to counteract this? 

I am a realist in the sense that, I think for years to come we are still going to see far more men in the investment space than we see women. Although we are trying to accelerate this process, I think that real systematic change takes time. I believe that positive discrimination can only take us so far. In the meanwhile, I think we need to focus on how we ensure that more capital is given to women. It is by educating men. We have to include them in what we are doing, gender lens financing and specific initiatives. Goldman Sachs recently announced their objectives regarding diversity on the boards of companies that they invest in. I think that is a step in the right direction. Let us make more inclusive investment decisions.

You co-founded FEM-START Africa in Ghana a couple of months before the onset of COVID-19. Could you share with us your experience? What are your plans for FEM-START Africa in the coming years? 

The objective of introducing FEM-START to Ghana is to provide female entrepreneurs with information, services, and a program that is designed specifically for them; we want to provide this program in a way that women are ready to receive it. Thus, we are trying to provide a cultural context that does not exclude women from participating in order to get the help they need to develop themselves as entrepreneurs. We want to be able to provide programs that meet women where they are and that give them the flexibility to engage without taking away from their other commitments. If these programs are not well thought out, you lose participants, and the idea is to bridge the gap in opportunities.

Thank you for joining us and sharing your inspiring view on entrepreneurship!