With an emerging middle class of 400 million people, 10 of the fastest growing economies globally, and the most youthful population of any region, Africa is a continent of significant opportunity. There are also risks, as there are anywhere, including the challenge of combatting corruption, navigating opaque regulations and developing a skilled workforce. Below are tips for business success in Africa:

 

Build Personal Relationships: Most Western businesses are data driven and transactional in nature. Business in Africa is predicated on relationships. Developing personal relationships and trust with business counterparts and government officials is a key dimension to commercial success. Leaders in government and business on the continent will take time to understand what is being presented to them and ensuring that any transaction is genuinely win-win.

 

Engaging Government: The role of government in the African business environment is more pronounced than in most other regions. It is important to reach out to key decision-makers at various levels of government to keep them informed of broad commercial objectives. This can be done in a time effective and transparent manner.

 

Align Commercial and Development Objectives: Every African government has a national development strategy. Whether a company is making an investment in life sciences, ICT, energy or manufacturing, demonstrating how an investment is going to help the government achieve its development objectives in a particular sector is very helpful to commercial success.

 

Mitigating the Corruption Risk: Corruption risk varies greatly by country and sector, and companies that mitigate it successfully start with a thorough risk assessment and appropriately tailored compliance measures. They also treat compliance as a critical “business enabler,” and use a mix of compliance, government affairs, and commercial levers to mitigate risk.

 

Investing in Africa’s Talent: It is worth including a high-quality-skills-training program as part of any investment strategy. The appetite and capability of young African men and women to learn global best business practices cannot be overestimated. Hiring locally and investing in career development will pay significant long-term dividends.

 

Come with Solutions: Some of the most immediate market-entry challenges include the nascent consumer credit market, currency risk, and the need to bring financing for most projects. Products must also be tailored to market realities of affordability and infrastructure limitations.

 

Local Counsel: Finding the right local counsel in Africa’s 54 jurisdictions can be challenging, especially in smaller markets. Covington has worked on matters in virtually every jurisdiction in the region and can be helpful in identifying, engaging, and coordinating the work of well-qualified local counsel.

 

Photo of Benjamin Haley Benjamin Haley

Ben Haley leads the firm’s White Collar and Anti-Corruption Practice in the Middle East and Africa and is a chair of the firm’s broader Africa Practice. With deep experience representing clients before regulators in high-profile white collar and disputes matters and a history operating on…

Ben Haley leads the firm’s White Collar and Anti-Corruption Practice in the Middle East and Africa and is a chair of the firm’s broader Africa Practice. With deep experience representing clients before regulators in high-profile white collar and disputes matters and a history operating on the ground in emerging markets, he helps clients assess and mitigate a wide range of complex legal and compliance risks.

Complementing his investigations and dispute resolution practice, Ben has a broad-based compliance advisory practice, helping clients proactively manage compliance risk in areas including anti-corruption, trade controls, anti-money laundering, fraud, and data privacy.

Ben represents corporate and individuals clients in a wide range of investigations and disputes, including:

  • Investigations under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”).
  • Investigations into anti-money laundering, financial crimes, anti-terrorism, and sanctions and export control issues.
  • Securities fraud and accounting matters.
  • Board investigations and shareholder litigation.
  • Insurance recovery.

Ben also regularly advises clients on a range of regulatory compliance and corporate governance issues. His compliance advisory practice includes:

  • Performing risk and compliance program assessments.
  • Leading compliance reviews on business partners and assisting companies with third-party risk management processes.
  • Conducting forensic accounting reviews and testing and enhancing financial controls.
  • Advising on market entry, cross-border transactions, and pre-acquisition diligence and post-acquisition integration.
  • Assisting companies in designing, implementing, and maintaining best-in-class compliance programs.

In recent years, Ben has steered a number of clients to successful resolutions and declinations in complex FCPA and corporate fraud matters with the U.S. Department of Justice and Securities Exchange Commission. In his advisory practice, Ben has served as lead compliance counsel on a number of major M&A and investment transactions. He has developed special expertise assisting clients in leveraging technology in their compliance programs, including assisting one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies in the design and implementation of an award-winning compliance data analytics and monitoring system.

Ben has been described by the Chief Compliance Officer of one of his clients as “[a]n outstanding senior lawyer and advisor,” and “a guiding light for all things compliance advisory in Africa,” whose “advice is crystal clear, covers all angles and is business friendly.”

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