Shopping in the commercial district of downtown Monrovia is eerie. Foreigners own almost every single business of note. The Lebanese presence here is strong, and their hold on commerce in the city is rather alarming. More recently Indian businessmen have moved in, but their presence here is less pronounced, especially compared to East Africa. Why doesn’t Liberia’s capital city boast Liberian-owned businesses you might ask?

Though I’m not an expert when it comes to the history, I do think there are some (relevant to microfinance) lessons to be learned from the cultural and social forces here. The story begins, so my friends have told me, when Liberian leaders started granting preferential trading rights to Lebanese traders decades ago. The deal they made was to have exclusive import / export rights, but no rights as citizens. For the Liberian political elite this meant that trade would flourish, but the traders and their wealth would not be a threat to the political status quo. Decades later, the Lebanese are quite successful, and you can find hummus just as easily as you can potato greens in this town.

As a descendant of Lebanese businessmen (and women) I have always been aware of the entrepreneurial nature of the Lebanese culture. Though I have not yet visited Lebanon itself, I know that this business ethic is instilled in Lebanese families throughout the world - from Beirut to Brooklyn. Historically, this makes sense. Since the time of the Phoenicians, Lebanon has been at the crossroads of east and west, and has been a dynamic trading power throughout the Mediterranean. For the sake of this post, how this ethic has been passed through generations and become a part of the Lebanese culture interests me.

Because I believe that the path towards the reconstruction of Liberia is through successful local enterprise, the challenge of nurturing local entrepreneurs is paramount. But, in a country like Liberia, where civil war interrupted school for 15 or so years (our office cleaner is 19 and is in 5th grade) and human capacity is lacking, how do we spread the spirit of entrepreneurialism? How do we teach the younger generation of Liberians what it means to succeed in business? In the case of the Lebanese, it comes from the family and the community, working in the family business, and being around the community of entrepreneurs. Yet Liberians will have to learn or re learn these skills after decades of living without a functioning economy. Even worse, the aid that sustained Liberians through the war, in many cases dulled their business sensibilities.

Yes, most folks are in business for themselves already. They have “small small” businesses, selling peanuts, fixing cars, selling donuts etc. Don’t get me wrong, microentrpreneurs are an important part of the economy here. They will be for a long time, but their jobs are insecure, and produce little excess income for their households. What I’m talking about are businesses that grow to scale, employ hundreds of people in stable jobs, and can withstand the kind of external shocks that are present in an economy like Liberia. In a country that hasn’t had a functioning economy for almost 20 years, how do you find and train the kind of entrepreneurs who can make these society stabilizing businesses happen.

The Foundation for Women does provide some business training before it gives its microloans. It educates women on how to run small microenterprises that generate household income. Generally this means a small provisions type shop, some type of farming, making charcoal something like that. A few women have already shown their ambition though. They have recently taken 500 USD (a large loan for local and international microfinance standards). They have restaurants and other more substantial “growth” businesses. Maybe they can be business mentors for other FFW women? Maybe FFW can recreate the family dynamic seen in communities such as the Lebanese? Witnessing the closeness of the women at their group meetings has been encouraging. It might be too early to tell whther this is possible in such a difficult economic environment, but I sincerely hope that the FFW family can provide the education, support and resources to build a family of successful women entrepreneurs. Liberia needs them!