The B.O.R.N. Initiative

Where does the B.O.R.N. Initiative come from?

The B.O.R.N. Initiative is the acronym for "Build Our Rainbow Nation".

I am Jacques Fourie. I am the father of 5 beautiful children between the ages of 14 and 29. I am the founder and CEO of Global Experts Industries and the focus of my company is helping entrepreneurs building and growing viable and sustainable businesses in South Africa.

In my career I was fortunate to receive a very good education and to complete my studies with the help of a bursary - and that gave me a real boost in my career.

I have witnessed my children, their friends and peers struggling to get employment ; and to become self-sufficient. This initiative was born out of that pain and desperation.

What we want to achieve

The B.O.R.N. initiative is a collaboration between potential entrepreneurs, the public, business, media, government, independent expert advisers and non-governmental organisations.

The purpose is to educate, support, finance and nurture the capabilities of our young entrepreneurs and to provide a platform for them to help them achieve financial freedom and success.

For the cost of R10 you can buy an equity stake in the pool of businesses and help us fund Phase 1 of our project.

The pain of our youth in South Africa

In South Africa, more than half of the people under the age of 25 who are actively seeking work, cannot find employment.

The general world unemployment is 12.6%.

In South Africa the general unemployment is 37,2%.

For the youth in South Africa it is the worst. According to Statistics South Africa the burden of unemployment is also concentrated among the youth as they account for 63,5% of the total number of unemployed persons. Statistics South Africa 2018

For some, the problem is a lack of access to education, funding or job opportunities. For others it is a lack of skills.

In this economic crisis the problem for most unemployed young people is a lack of experience. They are caught in a vicious catch 22 circle – no job because of a lack of experience and no experience because of the lack of a job.

This national tragedy unfolds for young people and is destroying our goal of creating a strong vibrant “Rainbow Nation”. At a stage in their lives when they have the most energy, the most drive, the strongest will to succeed, our youth faces the least opportunity.

Young people have so much to offer. They have fresh ideas, a strong ability to adapt and the enthusiasm to make a change. They want to add value. They want to be involved. They want to be asked for their opinion. They want to grow, but mostly they want to learn.

What we need to make this dream come true

Phase 1 – Getting the word out

The first part of the initiative is to publicize our intention with this campaign. This crowdfunding exercise will focus on funding the development of the website platform and to create initial internet and social media awareness.

Phase 2 – Connecting the stakeholders

The second part of the initiative is to visit and bring the stakeholders on board. Stakeholders will consist of:

• Business and Media;
• Business professionals to serve as an expert panel;
• Government; and
• The public.

Our objective is to fund this phase via crowdfunding as well.

Phase 3 - Go-Live of the initiative

Phase 3 will be the launch of the initiative. During this phase the media campaign will be intensified via all the stakeholder groups and widened to the bigger public audience. Our vision is to secure bigger media coverage on the internet and social media via podcasts and to secure national television coverage via a reality type of show that will showcase the successes of the entrepreneurs.

This phase will be funded via public, government and business investment. These investments will buy a maximum of 25% equity in the newly established businesses.

Phase 4 - Monitoring and continuous improvement

As the businesses established by the entrepreneurs grow they will be required to pay dividends as profit towards the investors on the equity investment funding the businesses received.

50% of the profits will go directly to the investors and 50% will be used to "Pay-It-Forward" to boost the funding of more new business initiatives.

During this phase the expert panel will help and guide the entrepreneurs and businesses to success and help implementing improvements to the businesses.