Capgemini and IICD team-up to advance e-commerce

In a nutshell ...

• Capgemini and IICD are working together to meet the needs of developing country partners in their e-commerce activities.
• The strategic enabling partnership was officially launched during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations.
• The partnership's objectives are to:
  - Bring together Capgemini's e-commerce knowledge and IICD's partner network as IICD's e-commerce sector twin;
  - Link Capgemini's broad staff expertise with that of IICD's expert network and advisory services;
  - Identify other opportunities to work together to support ICTs for Development in developing countries under a portfolio approach.

"This is a big step. Through this MoU, IICD helps find solutions to technical problems. With IICD and Capgemini in a permanent agreement, we can continually get access to expert technical advice."
- IICD Project partner Mr. Edward Addo Dankwa, Ghanaian Ministry of Food and Agriculture

The partnership

By end year 2000, IICD had in its projects portfolio more than six projects in which local project partners were actively pursuing some form of e-business in support of the project's overall goals and objectives. These projects range in terms of sector, from agriculture to livelihood opportunities such as music. In their activities, project partners began to express to IICD a need to have strengthened e-business knowledge - knowledge they could apply to the betterment of their individual projects. In response, IICDs Partnerships Programme began pursuing a partnership with a private sector company with solidly proven e-business skills. It did not take long for IICD to find that partner in Capgemini.

IICD and Capgemini's Public Sector Division signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2000 to reflect their new strategic alliance. This strategic enabling partnership is based on e-business knowledge sharing as symbolically illustrated by Jeroen Simons, Business Unit Manager of Capgemini's Public Sector Division, during the MoU signing ceremony. At the event, Mr. Simons handed IICD's Managing Director, Jac Stienen, a voluminous book about the development of e-business applications, stating at the time: "by giving you this book, I am furnishing you with actual knowledge and worthy practical examples."

A strategic alliance

In its role as an independent knowledge broker, the closing of this MoU is central to IICD's achieving its mission and to more effectively working with its country programme partners. The strategic enabling partnership with Capgemini is founded on the sector twinning approach, with the focus being e-business.

What will this mean in practice? It means that for the period of the MoU, Capgemini will serve as IICD's primary source of e-business knowledge during a series of collaborative activities that are structured and organised as part of a systematic twinning approach. The project began in February 2001 with an e-business workshop, jointly organised by Capgemini and IICD.

After the workshop, the work really begins. Each e-business project partner will then begin imple-menting his or her individual project Action Plans. IICD's e-business project partners are by and large from the agriculture sector - they are sector specialists with good ICT skills. These partners are likely to encounter some stumbling blocks while implementing their Action Plans. Capgemini together with IICD's Knowledge Sharing Advisory Services will be available to these e-business project partners to provide specialised e-business knowledge and assistance during this implementation period.

More

For any questions on the Capgemini-IICD partnership or if you are interested in more information on how to partner with IICD, please contact IICD's Partnerships Manager at partnering@iicd.org Be sure to visit the websites of Capgemini and IICD to learn more about each organisation and its activities in the field of ICTs and ICTs for Development.