Wilfred | Senior associate, Spiro

I joined Sciences Po in the Europe Africa undergraduate program where I specialised in Economics. I chose economics because I have always had the ambition to understand how businesses, markets and governments operate and better respond to the threats and opportunities that emerge. 

For my Masters, I was looking for a program that would allow me to continue to build on my economics background and also combine it with the biggest challenge our generation is currently facing - climate change. For this reason, the master's in International Business and Sustainability was a direct choice. And looking back, I am glad I made this choice.

Presently, I work as a senior associate within the CEO office at Spiro - the largest electric vehicle player in Africa with an active presence in over 4+ African countries. My responsibilities cut across numerous functions including supporting the CEO's office in designing and executing new strategies, business development new market expansion, and ESG functions within the group.

It is the opportunity to spearhead the acceleration of electric vehicle adoption in Africa by making electric vehicles more accessible; impacting directly the economic and social life of many communities. For now, we focus on the 2-wheelers segment and if you take my home country Kenya for example, an important part of the population earns their daily wages from operating motorbikes as taxis in the urban and rural areas. Switching to electric motorbikes increases their total earnings by about 20% daily as they are not exposed to the high gas prices today. Equally, electric vehicles help tackle air pollution prevalent in most cities due to high population density and by so doing, reduce the strain on the public health sector from air pollution-related diseases

The Master in International Business and Sustainability provided me with the necessary understanding and skillset to be able to contribute to the present transitioning world due to climate change leading to ecological crisis, rising social inequalities and geopolitical imbalances. 

Through the program's faculty and the school's career office, I was provided continuous support through networking opportunities and referrals to internship opportunities that allowed my profile to be more competitive upon graduation. This played a large part in my landing my current position within Spiro. 

To Felicite and the entire team, thank you!

If just like me, you chose the program because you would like to understand the nexus between society (businesses, markets and governments) and our present transitioning world, then you chose the right program. If you are not sure how you can get started in the marketplace and the available opportunities, that is alright as most of us weren't sure as well. 

But I would encourage you to reach out without tire to the program's faculty staff. They are invaluable in pointing you to potentially the right leads. Equally, there are many of us eager to help you get started, and the program's faculty can very much help in getting in touch with us. Please do not be afraid to ask for help and guidance as often as you need and above all else, enjoy the process. Things have a funny way of turning out alright.