About this podcast
Africa: lost continent, aid-dependent basket case of economic development failures? Forget the old clichés. Francesca Beausang and her guests explore the ideas and concrete innovations through which Africa is becoming a model of innovation-driven development for the world. Afri-CAN is a podcast run by Pharo Foundation, a mission-driven, impact-oriented organisation that designs, funds and operates economic development programmes towards a vibrant, productive and self-reliant Africa.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 48 episodes
- Is Impact Investing Enough? · 22 min · Season 4 Episode 5Is impact investing enough to create meaningful change? In this episode of the Afri-CAN Podcast, Aunnie Patton Power, Founder of Intelligent Impact, author, and professor at…
- Can Regenerative Agriculture Really Work in Africa? · 34 min · Season 4 Episode 4What will it take to make regenerative agriculture work for both African farmers and investors? In this episode of the Afri-CAN Podcast, John Kruse, Principal – Agronomy &…
- Can Technology Fix Africa’s Construction Problem? · 24 min · Season 4 Episode 3What happens when construction equipment is needed urgently, but the right machine is hundreds of kilometers away? In Episode 3 of the Afri-CAN Podcast, we speak with Arthur…
- Impact Investing, Low-Fee Schools, and the Future of Development · 42 min · Season 4 Episode 2As aid flows decline, can impact investing help fill the gap in global development? In this episode of the Afri-CAN Podcast we speak with Corina Gardner, CEO of IDP Foundation…
- Development After the Fall of Aid · 34 minIn the first episode of Season 4 of the Afri-CAN Podcast, we speak with Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, about the future of development at a time when…
- Why Africa’s Future Needs Science · 39 min · Season 3 Episode 12In this episode, we explore why science is investable, why it matters more than ever in an age of growing scepticism, and how Africa’s young people can be inspired to see science…
- Forced Migration, Climate Change, and the Fight to Stay · 32 minIn this episode of Afri-CAN, we speak with Rania Sharshr, Director of Climate Action at IOM, about the human story behind climate-driven migration. As climate emergencies become…
- Feeding Recovery in Rwanda · 35 min · Season 3 Episode 9What if food security is only half the story? In this episode of Afri-CAN, we sit down with Nassir Katuramu, CEO of Solid’Africa, to explore a question that does not get asked…
- Venture Labs, Failure, and Startup Success in Africa · 45 min · Season 3 Episode 8What does it really take for entrepreneurs in Africa to succeed — and are venture labs part of the answer? In this episode of Afri-CAN, we explore how venture labs can help build…
- Can Solar Power Help Feed Africa? · 31 min · Season 3 Episode 7What does climate action look like when it starts on the farm? In this episode of Afri-CAN, we speak with Jon Saunders, COO of SunCulture, about how the company is helping…
- Africa, Innovation, and the Rise of Civilisations · 26 min · Season 3 Episode 6What helps civilisations flourish — and what causes them to fall behind? In this episode of Afri-CAN, we are joined by Johan Norberg, author of Peak Human, to explore the role of…
- Are Soft Skills Africa’s Missing Link? · 47 min · Season 3 Episode 5What really helps young people make the transition from school to work in Africa: technical skills or soft skills? In this episode of Afri-CAN, Wendy Cunningham from the World…
- Scaling Quality Early Childhood Education in Africa · 35 minHow can Africa scale high quality education that develops the whole child? In this episode, we define quality education as academic rigour plus scientific inquiry, critical…
- Music, Consciousness, and Student Success · 29 minHow can African education systems support both academic results and the deeper life skills students need to succeed? In Music, Consciousness, and Student Success, we explore how…
- A Lost Boy’s Fight for Water Justice · 38 min · Season 3 Episode 1Water can be life, livelihood – or a trigger for conflict. In this episode of Afri-CAN, we explore how rivers, wetlands and shared basins shape both survival and geopolitics in…
- What Eco-Labels Mean for Investors · 39 min · Season 2 Episode 13Impact investment is booming, and up to half of it now targets environmental goals. But how do fisheries in Africa and other developing regions actually access that capital? In…
- Development without Destruction · 38 min · Season 2 Episode 12What happens when environmental sustainability and economic development pull in different directions, and what if they don’t have to? In this Afri-CAN episode, we sit down with…
- Are Young People Investable? · 27 min · Season 2 Episode 11When a university degree can increase someone’s income many times over, who should carry the risk of paying for it – the student, the state, or society as a whole? In this…
- From War to Enterprise in Somaliland · 33 min · Season 2 Episode 10What does it mean to rebuild an economy almost from scratch? In this episode, we travel to Somaliland, a country that emerged from civil war with its private sector in ruins and…
- From Information Overload to Better Policy · 41 min · Season 2 Episode 9We live in an age of information overload, where producing research and “impact evidence” has become a priority, but turning all this knowledge into something that genuinely…
