By D. Thompson
Bowie State’s College of Business is hosting students and advisors from South Africa’s Rhodes University School of Business as part of a partnership for students at both institutions to develop a better understanding of emerging digital financial technology and entrepreneurship through the Entrepreneurial and Technological Empowerment Program (ETEP).
“Students now must understand the world of entrepreneurship from a global perspective and how to leverage block chain, open payment systems, and other digital financial networks and platforms,” said Dr. Kavita Kapur, assistant professor in the department of management, marketing, and public administration at Bowie State. “We’re using an experiential learning model that introduces students to the cultural, economic, technical, and political differences that must be factored when considering operating a global business.”
The eight students and two advisors from Rhodes University serve as the liaison for students at Bowie State to work with co-ops in South Africa on technology that will aid them in identifying global markets for their goods and services.
“We need to learn how to apply technology in rural communities in South Africa,” said Dr. Tshidi Mohapaloa, business professor at Rhodes University and ETEP advisor. “It is imperative that farmers and other business owners understand the rudiments of e-commerce, entrepreneurship, and begin learning about cryptocurrency and block chain technologies. Digital financial literacy is critical as co-ops and individual business owners strive to participate in the global marketplace.”
Phiwokuhle Hadebe earned a bachelors’ of science degree in microbiology and biochemistry from Rhodes University, and is pursuing a masters’ degree in enterprise management. He is convinced that the emerging digital financial currencies and networks are the future and must be exploited by business owners and co-ops in South Africa.
“I believe cryptocurrency is changing the world economy daily,” he said. “And block chain has many more applications besides finance. People in South Africa and here in the United States must learn more about block chain and cryptocurrency to remotely compete offering goods and services worldwide.”
ETEP began in the spring semester of 2022 with students from Bowie State and Rhodes University communicating with each other via Slack while collaborating on a variety of projects to support the coops in South Africa. Jada Bailey, who graduated from Bowie State in May with a bachelors’ degree in business administration, participated in the first cohort.
“Our class was assigned co-ops in South Africa to complete our capstone project that entailed identifying technology solutions to improve their customer service and other value propositions,” said Bailey. “We had to figure out their problem areas. It was eye-opening to me and to everyone in class because the experience showed us how businesses in developing countries can benefit from a range of technologies including bitcoin.”
“The bottom line is that we want Rhodes University and Bowie State students to develop an entrepreneurial mindset that is technologically driven when thinking about growing a business globally,” said Dr. Kapur. “That’s why this partnership between the two institutions is so important.”
Next spring Dr. Kapur and students from Bowie State will travel to South Africa to reciprocate the visit from the Rhodes University students and meet with co-ops and other entrepreneurs.
