Interned with Leadership Initiatives to improve a business in the developing world.

Consulted with CEOs and marketing experts to develop viable solutions for a business in Bauchi State, Nigeria.

Received a grant reviewed by leaders from Exxon, The United Nations, and the Nigerian Embassy to implement solutions for my business partner.

Chima Blanchard

Bullis School

Class of 2024

Chima Blanchard is happy and excited to be enrolled in the International Leadership & Business Internship this summer. He is more than thankful to have the opportunity to participate in this program to help entrepreneurs in other countries to build a strong business plan to helpfully start and grow their businesses.

Chima is a rising junior at Bullis, where he is on the honor roll. He is an aspiring entrepreneur himself and has recently started a sneaker reselling business. In addition to starting his own business, he is also a member of the school’s track and field team. Lastly, Chima is currently exploring other interests and finding things that make him happy that will also help him become successful in the future.

In the future, Chima would like to attend college as a business major, where he will also pursue a minor in Spanish. He will also continue to grow his sneaker reselling business. He would also like to weight and fitness train in college.

Collaborated With A Business In The Developing World

Earned a Development Grant to Enact Solutions

Collaborated With Business Development Experts

Our team reviewed the economic, social, political, and environmental factors that impact our partner business to design a launch plan and identify how to bridge the gap between our business partner’s current and desired conditions.

In order to fund the proposed business, our team composed a detailed plan and pitched our proposal to request seed funding from the Leadership Initiatives Grant Committee.

After researching the socio-economic conditions facing our business partners, our team worked with the Nigerian development staff to create effective solutions to the challenges our business partner was facing.

My Business Consultant Training

Abdullahi Umar

Quick Facts

Business Partner Age: 41 years old

Business Partners Current Living Place: No. 5 Baban Shadda Shopping Complex Dutsen Tanshi Bauchi, Bauchi State

Marital Status: Married

Spouse Names: Ruqqaiya and Rashida

Children: Mujahida, 13 Years; Aliyu, 11 Years; Amatu, 7 Years; Maryam, 5 Years; Ahmad, 3 Years; Maiminat, 5 Months; Abdulazeez, 3 Years; Rahamah, 5 Months

Type of Business: Computer Services Business

Years Working: 8 years

Top Three Problems: 1) Outdated tools and no money to upgrade, 2) Publicity and advertising for the business, and 3) Lack of electricity

Abdullahi Umar began to learn how to work on computers while serving as an apprentice in a computer business in Maiduguri, Borno state in 2014.

Abdullahi graduated from the University of Maiduguri in the same year. Though he studied health education, he has always had a flair for computer systems and a desire to provide excellent computer services.

He learned all that he could at an early age, and eventually opened up his own business. He wanted to combine his knowledge of computers with his passion for providing excellent service.

About Abdullahi

Abdullahi would like to provide cheap computer services to individuals who want easy access to technology. He really wants to start ending the digital divide in Nigeria by ensuring that more and more peole know how to use technology and have access to it in their every day lives. He would like apprentices and employees that he can specifically teach these skills to help provide affordable computer services to all.

Business Goals

Abdullahi Umar wants to provide the local community with low-cost computer services. He has seen the positive effect that technology has had on his community members, specifically students. He wants to train more community members to develop their computer skills so that they can apply to the growing technological job market within Nigeria.

He then drops the children off at their various schools. He opens his shop around 8 am and closes around 10 pm daily. His computer services business has been the major source of income through which he feeds his family, pays their medical bills, buys clothes, and pays the school fees for his children.

Family & Home

Abdullaahi says "through my partnership with Leadership Initiatives I wish to learn better ways of running a computer business, getting the most recent information like upgrading to latest versions of softwares, and new and easy Apps that make my work easier and faster, etc."

Abdullahi Umar wants to provide the local community with low-cost computer services. He has seen the positive effect that technology has had on his community members, specifically students. He wants to train more community members to develop their computer skills so that they can apply to the growing technological job market within Nigeria.

Our Partnership

The primary motivation for Abdullahi’s Mai Sarauta Enterprises small business is to provide simple, trustworthy access to technology for all people in the Bauchi area by providing computer and internet services. Through resources provided by Leadership Initiatives, our team is revitalizing Abdullahi's current business. In the long run, this initiative will lead him to reach his mission of "training more community members to develop their computer skills so that they can apply to the growing technological job market within Nigeria." Our team plans to support Abdullahi in his positive efforts through requesting funding, redesigning infrastructure, developing advertising, and kickstarting a bookkeeping process in order to sustain the business. Abdullahi's has the demanding responsibility of providing for his large family of two wives and eight children. His motivation to work hard for his business as well as for the better of his community comes from his family's enduring support. As a short-term goal, Abdullahi strives to upgrade the overall quality of his equipment and atmosphere of Mai Sarauta Enterprises for his existing and potential consumers and provide better technological access to his community. Abdullahi hopes to offer basic computer training classes, share knowledge, and further expand access to technology to the next generation in Nigeria.

My Grant Proposal

Leadership Initiatives is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is dedicated to creating future leaders across the globe through experiential learning.

In the International Business & Development Internship, I worked directly with some of the world’s leading business and development experts to learn about international business and development.

My Grant Proposal Presentation

At the conclusion of the internship, I presented my grant proposal to a panel of distinguished judges.

Internship Highlights

Our team began the business development process by having a one-on-one Zoom call directly with our business partner, Abdullahi Umar, and Nigerian project coordinator to ensure productive collaboration.

We learned more about his life, family, and desires for the proposed business venture, as well as the challenges he was facing.

By discussing first-hand the challenges our partner faced, our team successfully and efficiently began to brainstorm solutions to launch her business.

Each morning we held constructive discussions about our ideas, the advice we received the day before, and the timeline necessary to begin implementing our ideas in real-time.

I had the unique opportunity to visit the Embassy of Sweden in Washington, DC, where I learned about Sweden and its diplomatic relationship with the United States.

The current ambassador of the Swedish Embassy is Ambassador Karin Olofsdotter, who is Sweden’s first female ambassador to the United States.

While we toured the embassy, we also learned about a wide range of policy issues including climate and sustainability, trade, security and democracy, gender equality, freedom of speech and culture.

Our team met with leading experts in the field of business and economic development from the State Department, Exxon, Harvard University, Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, and top US companies and nonprofits.

With their guidance, we streamlined our initial ideas to further our efforts in launching the venture our business partner envisioned.

Our team advanced our communication, teamwork, and problem-solving skills through hands-on project management and development.

These leaders included Dr. Sarah Stiles, Professor and Provost at Georgetown University, and Carla Brooks, a marketing leader and advertising expert at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication

Our team pitched the final proposal to a panel of expert judges from Harvard University, the Leadership Initiatives Nigerian Development Team, and the Leadership Initiatives Grant Committee.

This formal pitch allowed our team to practice our skills and utilize our entrepreneurial toolkit, all while showcasing our efforts to transform the business we partnered with.

At the end of the pitch, we were able to receive feedback on our proposal for our business partner.

Over the next year, our business partner’s venture will be made into reality and monitored for sustained success and growth.