Santiago Manzur
My Business Training
Ibrahim Haruna
Quick Facts
Ibrahim Haruna, nicknamed "Baban," is a resilient 40-year-old university graduate and experienced retail professional from Yelwa Kagadama, Bauchi.
Raised in a large household, Ibrahim learned independence early when his father’s health declined.
As a devoted husband to two wives and a father of five, he works tirelessly to support his family, alongside assisting his elderly parents with medical expenses.
Despite losing his successful, independent provision shop to an uncompensated government demolition in 2024, Ibrahim maintained his composure.
He transitioned into working as an employee for a friend, focused entirely on rebuilding his life and retail career.
Ibrahim Haruna
Business Goals
Ibrahim aims to regain his financial independence by launching a residential retail outlet named Baban Ummi Provision Store.
Operating daily from 6:30 AM to 10:00 PM, his business will supply vital household food items, snacks, toiletries, and cold beverages at fixed, highly affordable prices.
He targets neighborhood housewives aged 20 to 50 who value budget-friendly convenience, product variety, and reliable service.
Ibrahim projects serving at least fifty loyal customers weekly, with significant sales surges during major festive holidays.
Ultimately, he plans to establish a trusted neighborhood brand modeled after the impactful simplicity of BUA branding.
Ibrahim Haruna
Business Obstacles
Ibrahim possesses over two decades of comprehensive retail management and customer service experience, yet he currently owns zero commercial equipment or startup inventory.
His primary operational challenge is the lack of funding to purchase a permanent storefront of his own following his previous shop's destruction.
Additionally, operating without modern appliances limits his daily revenue, as he cannot sell refrigerated goods or preserve perishable stock during frequent regional power cuts.
Finally, navigating inventory tracking and promotional marketing without formal bookkeeping training represents a major hurdle for him as he works to establish a secure, independent mark for his business.
Ibrahim Haruna
Vulnerabilities
Ibrahim is collaborating with Leadership Initiatives to move away from retail employment into full business ownership by launching an independent provision store.
This strategic partnership will equip his new startup with essential commercial assets, including a deep freezer, a power generator, display tables, wall-mounted shelves, and secure counter units.
By providing the critical capital required to secure a prominent storefront in a residential area, this initiative allows Ibrahim to safely stock bulk commodities like flour, sugar, rice, and milk.
This support directly creates a reliable business foundation, enabling him to comfortably fund his children's education.
My Business Proposal
Throughout the program, we worked closely with Ibrahim Haruna to develop a clear understanding of their business goals. Though they have leveraged their skills and years of experience to create their business, they face obstacles hindering the expansion of their work.
Guided by their vision, we created a proposal detailing the infrastructure materials necessary to support the growth of their business. We devised a plan that would allow Ibrahim Haruna to optimize their business through a new financial tracking system.
This new budget enables Ibrahim Haruna to allocate funds toward essential materials and equipment, supporting the improvement of their services. Effective financial tracking will be crucial for managing increased revenue and preserving assets, ensuring the business’s long-term growth and stability.
My Business Proposal Presentation
As part of the International Leadership and Business Internship, I collaborated with top development experts to strengthen my business partner’s operation and finances.
At the conclusion of the program, my team presented our final proposal to a panel of judges from the Leadership Initiatives Grant Committee. This formal pitch allowed us to demonstrate our entrepreneurial skills, showcase our strategic plan, and advocate for meaningful change in our partner’s business.
Our team was awarded grant funding to support the implementation of our business partner’s plan, providing life-changing support that will expand operations, strengthen financial stability, and create new growth opportunities. Over the next year, this grant will help transform the future of their business and improve the quality of life for both the entrepreneur and their community.
Internship Highlights
- Business Partner Meeting
- Visit To The Embassy Of Kenya
- Diplomacy Briefing At The Egyptian Embassy
- Professional Mentorship
Our business development journey began with a one-on-one Zoom meeting with our partner, Ibrahim Haruna, and our Nigerian project coordinator. This initial conversation laid the foundation for strong collaboration. It allowed us to better understand our partner's background, family, goals for the business, and the specific challenges they were facing.
Hearing directly from Ibrahim Haruna provided the insight we needed to begin brainstorming practical, personalized solutions. Each morning, our team held focused discussions to refine our ideas, reflect on expert advice from the day before, and adjust our timeline to move our plans forward efficiently.
Throughout the process, on-staff project coordinators and business development experts offered guidance, helping us ask the right questions and turn our ideas into meaningful, actionable strategies.
I had the unique opportunity to visit the Embassy of Kenya, where I gained firsthand insight into the role of diplomacy in fostering strong relationships between Kenya and the United States.
The embassy serves as a center for international collaboration, partnering with countries and global organizations to address pressing issues such as poverty, gender inequality, and climate change. Through this visit, I learned how diplomats engage in meaningful dialogue and policy development to create sustainable, people-focused solutions.
Officials from the Embassy of Kenya shared how they collaborate with local communities to identify needs and implement programs that empower individuals and strengthen long-term development. This commitment to community-driven impact inspired my team and me as we worked to develop our own business proposal focused on creating lasting change.
During my visit to the Eygptian Embassy, I gained insight into how diplomacy shapes international cooperation and development. The experience deepened my understanding of the embassy’s role in promoting peace, fostering economic partnerships, and addressing shared global challenges.
Embassy representatives discussed how their work supports cross-cultural exchange, advances policy priorities, and strengthens relationships between the Eygptian people and the United States. I learned how embassies serve as bridges, connecting governments, communities, and organizations to create innovative solutions for global issues.
This visit broadened my perspective on international leadership and inspired me to think critically about how collaboration, cultural awareness, and strategic planning can drive meaningful progress- principles that our team applied while developing our business proposal.
Throughout the internship, our team had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with leading experts in business and economic development from Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
One of the highlights was a session with Carla Brooks, Business and Development Officer at the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
My team also worked directly with a personal mentor. Our mentor provided us with career insights, project support, and feedback for our business ideas. The meetings we had throughout the week with our mentor provided critical insights from the initial business ideation phase through our project presentation.
With support from Ms. Brooks and other global leaders, including Eric Rosenstein, we refined our ideas, strengthened our strategy, and developed a powerful and polished pitch deck to present at the end of the week. Their guidance helped us take our business proposal to the next level, creating a plan designed not only to launch a venture, but to transform our business partner’s future.