经济学人22:非洲企业家 同舞者

 　　Business.

　　商业。

　　African entrepreneurs.

　　非洲企业家。

　　Parallel players.

　　同舞者。

　　Why many of Africa's budding businessfolk are jacks-of-all-trades.

　　为何许多非洲的新兴企业家杂而不精。

　　ONE of the many terms Silicon¹ Valley has bequeathed to the business world is "serial² entrepreneur", a label for those restless souls who start one business after another. Perhaps Africa can now contribute another expression: the "parallel entrepreneur". More than in any other part of the developing world, the continent's budding business folk create networks of several firms across a number of different sectors³ of the economy, according to research by IMANI, a think-tank based in Ghana. The 189 successful entrepreneurs it surveyed in Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya own, on average, six businesses each. One boasted more than 60. What explains this entrepreneurial hyperactivity?

　　硅谷留给商界的众多术语之一是"连续企业家"，指的是那些接连创业的不安分的人。也许非洲正在提供另一种表述"并行企业家"。根据加纳智库IMANI的研究，与世界任何发展中的地区相比，更多非洲大陆的新兴企业家创造了横跨不同经济领域的系列公司网络。在参与调查的加纳，尼日尔和肯尼亚的189个成功企业家中，他们人均拥有6家企业，其中一位拥有超过60家企业。如何解释这种企业家的极度活跃现象？

　　One reason for it is simply the wealth of opportunity, says Cyril Allen II, a well-connected businessman in Liberia's capital, Monrovia. He and his family farm cocoa and coffee, run a cleaning business, lease out property and manage logistics for international companies. "The civil war here ended less than a decade ago."

　　利比里亚首都蒙罗维亚一家实力雄厚的家族式企业家，Cyril Allen 二世表示，大量的机会是造成这种现象的原因之一。他和他的家族种植可可树和咖啡树，经营一家清洁公司，财产租赁以及为跨国公司提供物流管理服务。他还表示"内战已经结束将近十年了"。

　　Once a firm has established a degree of trust among its customers, that can in turn spawn⁴ new businesses, particularly when many other firms are unreliable. "We work based on relationships, so if I have a good relationship with a client, they might ask for another service," explains Njeri Rionge, an entrepreneur in Kenya whose interests extend from an internet provider to a management consultancy.

　　公司一旦在客户群中建立了一定的信用度，这就可以孕育出新的公司，尤其是在其他企业没有信用的情况下。肯尼亚企业家Njeri Rionge的业务涉及网络接入到管理咨询服务等领域，他解释说："我们的工作基于关系网，这样如果我与客户维系一个良好的关系，客户就有可能会要求提供其他服务"。

　　Necessity can also give rise to the creation of more than one company. UT Holdings, in Ghana, started out in 1997 granting loans. But Prince Kofi Amoabeng, its founder⁵, soon discovered that he needed to provide additional services to make the loans business work. He first added a debt-collection company, then security firms. "We found existing companies wanting," says Mr Amoabeng. He keeps expanding his business portfolio⁶, which now includes a life-insurance firm.

　　需求会导致更多公司的创建。位于加纳的UT Holdings创建于1997年，提供贷款服务。但创建者Kofi Amoabeng王子很快发现他需要提供额外的服务来维持贷款业务的运行。他首先创立一家债务收缴公司，然后是证劵公司。他说："我们发现已有公司的需求"。他不断的扩展公司的业务组合，目前还包括了一家人寿保险公司。

　　Certain characteristics of African economies also make it more profitable to keep starting new firms rather than build a single big one. Key resources are scarce. Mid-level managers are in sufficient supply, but few are capable of running large businesses, which is why they often apply their talents in several firms simultaneously⁷. Financing is hard to come by (in many countries loans are granted for as little as 20 months); entrepreneurs find it easier to get several small loans for each business rather than a large chunk⁸ of money.

　　非洲经济的特性同样使得创建新企业比建立一个大型企业更加有利可图。关键资源非常稀少，中型企业的管理者可以获得充足的供应，但很少人有能力运行一家大型企业，这也是他们使人才同时从事不同企业的原因。融资非常困难（在很多国家需要20个月才能拿到贷款），而企业家发现为几个企业单独申请小额贷款比一宗大笔贷款更加容易。

　　But the most crucial factor may be bureaucracy. Its unpredictability deters⁹ businessmen from putting all their resources into one basket-out of fear that the market could be the target of onerous¹⁰ regulation. Separate companies are often used to lower tax payments, says Bright Simons, an entrepreneur in Accra, Ghana's capital, who also works as a business analyst¹¹. A second firm might be formed to supply materials to the first, he explains, allowing the owner to adjust the prices and profits. And once an entrepreneur has learned how to navigate¹² the red tape, why not apply this valuable skill to other undertakings¹³?

　　但是最关键的因素应该是政府。它们不可预知的阻碍商人将所有资源集中到一起——由于担心市场会被麻烦的监管条例所限制。Bright Simons是加纳首都阿克拉的企业家，同时也是一名商业分析师。他解释说，单独的公司通常缴纳较低的税金，而第二个公司为第一个提供原材料，这使得企业家可以调整产品的价格和利润。如果一个企业家学会了如何驾驭这些政府的繁杂手续，为何不将这种有价值的技术应用于其他的企业中呢？

　　Critics of Africa's parallel entrepreneurs worry that jacks-of-all-trades cannot become masters of any. And some investors¹⁴ are wary¹⁵ of putting money into African firms because of their often labyrinthine¹⁶ ownership structures. But multitasking has its good sides, argues Ms Rionge, who in one of her parallel activities mentors¹⁷ young entrepreneurs. "It makes African business leaders agile¹⁸ and adaptable—both good skills that are absent in many developed economies."

　　针对非洲"并行企业家"的批评家担心，这种杂而不精的方式会使企业变得没有专长。一些投资者由于非洲企业错综复杂的所有权结构而采取非常谨慎的投资行为。但在自己的并行企业中培训青年企业家的Rionge女士认为，这种多企业的并行方式有着自身的优点，它培养了非洲企业领导人的灵活性和适应性，而这两种优秀技巧正是许多发达经济体中所欠缺的。

1 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

2 serial   

n.连本影片，连本电视节目；adj.连续的

参考例句：

• A new serial is starting on television tonight.今晚电视开播一部新的电视连续剧。
• Can you account for the serial failures in our experiment?你能解释我们实验屡屡失败的原因吗？

3 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 spawn   

n.卵，产物，后代，结果；vt.产卵，种菌丝于，产生，造成；vi.产卵，大量生产

参考例句：

• The fish were madly pushing their way upstream to spawn.鱼群为产卵而疯狂地向上游挤进。
• These fish will lay spawn in about one month from now.这些鱼大约一个月内会产卵。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 portfolio   

n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位

参考例句：

• He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
• He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。

7 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

8 chunk   

n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量）

参考例句：

• They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice.他们必须当心大块浮冰。
• The company owns a chunk of farmland near Gatwick Airport.该公司拥有盖特威克机场周边的大片农田。

9 deters   

v.阻止，制止( deter的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The filth here deters all but the invited guest. 这里污秽不堪，除非有事，外人是裹足不前的。 来自辞典例句
• Many people believe that capital punishment deters crime. 很多人相信极刑能阻止犯罪。 来自互联网

10 onerous   

adj.繁重的

参考例句：

• My household duties were not particularly onerous.我的家务活并不繁重。
• This obligation sometimes proves onerous.这一义务有时被证明是艰巨的。

11 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

12 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。

13 undertakings   

企业( undertaking的名词复数 )； 保证； 殡仪业； 任务

参考例句：

• The principle of diligence and frugality applies to all undertakings. 勤俭节约的原则适用于一切事业。
• Such undertakings require the precise planning and foresight of military operations. 此举要求军事上战役中所需要的准确布置和预见。

14 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

15 wary   

adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的

参考例句：

• He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
• Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。

16 labyrinthine   

adj.如迷宫的；复杂的

参考例句：

• His mind slid away into the labyrinthine world of doublethink.他的思绪，早滑进到双重思想迷宫般的世界里去。
• The streets of the Old City are narrow and labyrinthine.老城区的街道狭促曲折，好似迷宫一般。

17 mentors   

n.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的名词复数 )v.（无经验之人的）有经验可信赖的顾问( mentor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Beacham and McNamara, my two mentors, had both warned me. 我的两位忠实朋友，比彻姆和麦克纳马拉都曾经警告过我。 来自辞典例句
• These are the kinds of contacts that could evolve into mentors. 这些人是可能会成为你导师。 来自互联网

18 agile   

adj.敏捷的，灵活的

参考例句：

• She is such an agile dancer!她跳起舞来是那么灵巧！
• An acrobat has to be agile.杂技演员必须身手敏捷。