Increasing private sector capacity for policy dialogue: The West African Enterprise Network

Abstract

Sustaining policy reforms in democratizing settings calls for increased capacity among stakeholders for policy dialogue. International agencies have traditionally provided support to governments to achieve better policy analysis, design and implementation — essentially a supply-side approach. An example of building demand-making capacity is the creation of the West African Enterprise Network, a voluntary association of over 300 business men and women in 11 countries. With technical assistance support from the US Agency for International Development, networks in these countries have been formed both to promote policy dialogue with government and pursue business ventures, using advocacy tools and strategic planning techniques. The success of the Enterprise Network derives from solving the incentives problem for collective action, building ownership for an advocacy agenda from the ground up, considering sustainability and self-financing issues from the start, applying a facilitative approach to technical assistance, and benefiting from donor flexibility regarding outcomes.