Volume 5, 2005-06 - November 23rd, 2005

WASA Announcement & Events

           Club News

•WABF in Focus

•WASA General Assembly/WABF Chair Elections - December 7th

•WASA Random Dinners - Support WIVP

•WASA Admissions: Sign up to Help a Prospective

•Wharton Winter Ball - Dec 2nd

•WASA @ WICS - Choreographer Needed

 

Professional Events/Announcements

•Whitney M. Young Conference - Dec 2nd

•Roundtable: "Elections & Democracy" - 11/30

•Job Opportunity @ Nike - from WASA Alum

•Job Opportunity - Google in Africa

•AAUW Fellowship - Application Deadline Dec 1st

 

Business News in Africa

 

 

Club News


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WABF in Focus

WABF was an overwhelming success! Thank you to all of WASA who came out to support the forum this weekend. The WABF team definitely raised the bar this year.  Preliminary feedback from participants, alumni, and the Wharton administration have been extremely positive.

 

The impact we’ve had on the wider African community will have positive ramifications for the Wharton brand and our admissions efforts. GREAT JOB !

If you missed the conference, but would still like to hear some of the amazing key note speeches & panels, please check the wabf site (www.whartonglobal.com/africa). We should have some of the audio/video recordings uploaded by the end of the month.   

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 WASA General Assembly/WABF Chair Elections - December 7th

 

The next WASA general assembly will be held on Wednesday, December 7th. This will be our last assembly for the Semester.  The elections for the WABF chair will also be held on that day, so we may begin the handover process to class of 2007 early. 

 

I will be sending more information on the voting process and the deadlines later this week.

 

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WASA Random Dinners - Support WIVP

WIVP will be auctioning off WASA hosted dinners at the Winter Ball. Proceeds will support the Wharton International Volunteer Program.

The Idea
WASA will host a series of random dinners to expose Wharton students to our cuisine & culture, and help us meet new non-WASA people.

The Rules
-WASA pays $100 towards your dinner bill. At most African restaurants this will = free dinner
-Maximum of 2 WASA hosts per group.
-Group size will most likely be 6 – 10.
-WASA hosts in charge of making reservation/coordination
-The names of your guests will be emailed to you before the dinner date.
-Feel free to plan your own small group dinners as well; just get approval from Social/Finance (Fontama/Gadzi) before proceeding.

Date/Venue
The date for these dinners is the evening of December 8th
The venues are Dahlak Restaurant (Ethiopia) and Fatou & Fama (Senegalese), both in West Philly

Host sign up is 1st come, 1st serve. Signup to be a WASA host at this link:https://webcafe.wharton.upenn.edu/eRoom/clubs/WASA/0_44bd8

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WASA Admissions: Sign up to Help a Prospective
Two recent events have increased the awareness of Africans about the Wharton MBA program: Tom Caleel’s visit to Africa and the Wharton Africa Business Forum. Over the last 1 week, I have received several more requests from prospective students who are applying to Wharton but I have not assigned them because current volunteers are all booked.

We do not have capacity to assist any more candidates unless more WASA folks sign up to help. We have already lost 2 great candidates in RD1 (they were Declined Without Interview) simply because we could not give them all the help we should have given them.

Right now we have less than 20 people signed up, some mentoring 2/3 students at once. Please sign up. I know we are all busy but the future of WASA and our ability to continue to put together the type of conference we saw last weekend depends on our ability to get good candidates to come to Wharton. Or else, in the future, we will be attending such great conferences at the other school…

To sign up, please click on the link below:
https://webcafe.wharton.upenn.edu/eRoom/clubs/WASA/0_3b037

 

Okezie Ofoegbu

 

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Wharton Winter Ball - Dec 2nd
 

Join 1,000 of your classmates one week from this Friday for an elegant evening that will feature a live jazz trio, a six-piece Latin band, and DJ. Enjoy hors d’oeuvres and an open bar with premium liquor, wine and beer. Taste exquisite dessert flowing from a chocolate fountain. Admire the WIVP ice sculpture while you sip on a hot toddy and enjoy unparalleled views of the city aboard one of the world’s grandest tall ships. Bid for enticing products and services through our silent auction. Bring your partner or gather a group of friends and dance the night away! Complimentary shuttle service will run between The Moshulu and Center City from 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.

Purchase your tickets online at http://www.wgastore.com/winterball2005.html 

The Wharton Winter Ball is brought to you by the Wharton International Volunteer Program, which supports critical strategic projects for NGOs in developing nations around the world. Organizations served address a wide variety of crucial human needs including education, healthcare, and access to economic opportunities. To learn more about WIVP’s mission and programs, please visit www.wivp.org. 

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WASA @ WICS - Choreographer Needed

It is now time to build on our momentum and organize an outstanding WASA show for the Wharton International Cultural Show (WICS). The African show has traditionally be one of flagships of this event. Our show has consistently been among the top 2 WICS performances. Your time has come, dear WASA Class of 2007! Carry the flag this year and organize a stunning show. You can count on the help of all the WASA 06, so please volunteer to:

- CHOREGRAPH the performance ( it’s time to bring your newest African dance steps). - and DANCE!!!!!!
Send an email to pcodo@wharton.upenn.edu, if you're interested in participating.
 

 

 



 

 

 

Professional Events/Announcements

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Whitney M. Young Conference - Dec 2nd
Accepting the Challenge, Becoming the Solution
Register now! http://wmy.wharton.upenn.edu/

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Roundtable: "Elections & Democracy" - 11/30
University of Pennsylvania
The African Studies Center &
The Middle East Center present a roundtable discussion on:

"Contesting Elections and Democracy: Examples from Ethiopia, Liberia,
Tanzania/Zanzibar and the Arab World"
(with faculty expertise)

Date: November 30, 2005
Time: 1:30 - 4:30 PM
Place: 3417 Spruce Street, Houston Hall: Room 314 (Class 47), University of Pennsylvania

THIS EVENT IS FREE & OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC

Directions & Parking:
http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/perelmanquad/directions.html
For more information please contact Dr. Ali Dinar,
aadinar@sas.upenn.edu, Phone (215) 898-6610
 

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Job Opportunity @ Nike - Message from WASA Alum

I am a WASA alum class of 2003 currently at Nike in Oregon. My current job (Sr. capital planning analyst) will be opening in the coming weeks and I wanted to give you guys a head start.

It is really a bread and butter corporate finance job (helping define dividend policy, optimal capital structure using share repurchase and debt issuance, project financing analysis as well as scenario valuation analysis, benchmarking studies..). The job gets some significant exposure to senior management and in particular the Corporate CFO and the Corporate Treasurer.

Those who are interested can send me their resume and I will give them to the hiring manager. I would also be happy to talk VERY HONESTLY about life at Nike and in Oregon. Bottom line is that it is a truly great place
Send me an email if you are REALLY interested at paul.nselel.wg03@wharton.upenn.edu  or paul.nselel@nike.com

Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving

Paul

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Job Opportunity - Google in Africa

Regional Representative - South Africa

Google is the number one internet search engine and one of the most-visited sites on the internet. We are a global, NASDAQ-listed company [GOOG] with over 4,000 employees. We have been profitable for over three years. Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. We are looking for seasoned, savvy and energetic professionals for the role of Regional Representative - South Africa.

The Regional Representative should be based locally and will be responsible for leading strategic and operational initiatives that are critical to the ongoing growth of the company. Our ideal candidate will have demonstrated leadership in marketing, sales or general management for an internet/technology company and/or management consulting, and have graduated at or near the top of their class from a leading graduate academic institution (MBA preferred). We are looking for self-starters who can work in a rapidly changing industry, tolerate ambiguity and demonstrate leadership with limited oversight. Fluency in English and local languages is required.

For immediate consideration, please send a text (ASCII) or HTML version of your resume in English to jobs@google.com.  Important: The subject field of your email must include Regional Representative - South Africa
 

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AAUW Fellowship - Application Deadline Dec 1st

AAUW International fellowships are awarded for full-time study or research to
women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Both graduate and
postgraduate study at accredited institutions is supported. The Foundation will
award 57 fellowships for the 2006-07 academic year. Six of these awards are
available to members of International Federation of University Women affiliate
organizations. These fellowship recipients may study in any country other than their own. The Foundation also awards several annual Home Country Project Grants ($5,000 to $7,000 each) to women who received AAUW Educational Foundation International Fellowships between 2001 and 2005. These grants support community-based projects designed to improve the lives of women and girls in the fellow's home country.
Applications for the academic year will be available August 1 to December 1,
2005. For more information, visit
http://www.aauw.org/fga/fellowships_grants/international.cfm
 

Business News in Africa

World's largest investment house opens in SA
Moneyweb - 23rd Nov 2005
FIDELITY Investments, one of the world’s largest financial services companies, this week opened an office in Sandton. (read more)

Today, Nigeria's Telecommunications Investment is Estimated at $8 Billion and is Expected to Reach $12 Billion
Businesswire - 22nd Nov 2005
After successfully liberalizing the telecommunications sector and auctioning three Global Systems for Mobile (GSM) licenses in January 2001 for $285 million each and further reserved a license for NITEL, the antecedents recorded have been astounding. (read more)

MTN touches a fresh high as speculation of takeover builds persist
Business Report - 23rd Nov 2005
Shares in MTN Group touched a fresh record yesterday on continued speculation that a rival may buy a stake in Africa's largest cellular operator. (read more)

Canada grants ECOWAS 5.75 million dollars for capacity building
English People - 22nd Nov 2005
The Canadian government has donated 5.75 million dollars to the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for capacity building, the News Agency of Nigeria reported Monday. (read more)

Portugal moves to revive its African connections
Business Day - 22nd Nov 2005
PORTUGAL was a major colonial power in Africa for more than 500 years until the end of its colonial period in the mid-1970s. Now the country wants to return to the continent to assist with its development. (read more)

Region's companies turning to debt capital markets
The East African - 9th Nov 2005
East Africa is witnessing unprecedented activity in the debt capital market. In Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, companies are raising millions of dollars every other day – with the debt markets emerging as the choice for companies seeking money to finance exp (read more)

Nigerian Telecom Market Worth $5bn Per Year
This Day - 18th Nov 2005
A new report by Intelecon has suggested that the Nigerian telecom market is worth some US$ 5 billion per annum. The same report stated that the market will grow to US$10 billion over the next five to six years. (read more)

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Please contact us with any questions/suggestions

Thanks from the WASA executive committee - wasaexec06@wharton.upenn.edu