The Challenge

Ethiopia's investment promotion efforts were heavily focused on attraction. Marketing materials, investment conferences, and promotional campaigns absorbed significant institutional energy. But once investors arrived, the support systems required to help them navigate approvals, resolve operational problems, and expand their operations were weak. Investors who faced difficulties had no reliable point of contact within government, and the agencies responsible for promotion had limited visibility into what was happening to investors after they committed.

The result was a pattern where investors either struggled quietly, escalated informally through political channels, or quietly wound down operations. None of these outcomes served Ethiopia's investment goals, and none were visible in the standard metrics used to assess investment promotion performance.

Our Approach

We worked with investment promotion and sector agencies to redesign the investor engagement model, shifting the focus from attraction to ongoing management. This involved mapping the full investor lifecycle, identifying where institutional support was needed at each stage, and designing service delivery protocols that matched investor needs to institutional capacity. We also developed a case management framework that would allow agencies to track investor status, flag problems early, and coordinate responses across institutions.

The framework was designed to be adaptable to existing systems, and included training and process documentation to support adoption.

Key Activities

  • Investor lifecycle mapping from entry to expansion
  • Analysis of post-commitment support gaps
  • Design of investor management service protocols
  • Development of a case management and tracking framework
  • Staff capacity support for investor-facing roles
  • Integration of promotion and retention functions
  • Metrics framework for retention-focused investment promotion

Outcomes

The redesigned model gave investment agencies a more complete picture of investor needs and a clearer mandate for post-entry support. The case management framework enabled proactive problem-solving rather than reactive escalation. Pilot implementation with a cohort of active investors demonstrated that early intervention on common operational issues significantly reduced the time investors spent navigating bureaucratic processes, and improved their willingness to expand operations and refer other investors.