Allison_Guiteras
Allison Guiteras
My Business Training
Aliyu Abubakar Zadawa
About Aliyu Abubakar Zadawa
Aliyu Abubakar Zadawa is a skilled and passionate carpenter from Bauchi State, Nigeria, with 18 years of experience. He dreams of establishing A.A. Zadawa Furnitures, a modern carpentry business focused on quality and customer satisfaction.
Aliyu specializes in cabinet making and interior design, aiming to create a workspace with advanced tools that serve his community’s diverse needs. His goal is to deliver durable and creative woodwork that enhances homes and lives.
Aliyu is also committed to empowering others by providing mentorship and creating job opportunities, fostering growth and skill development in his community.
Aliyu Abubakar
Business Goals
Aliyu’s core values are creativity, quality, integrity, and service. He plans to establish A.A. Zadawa Furnitures in Bauchi’s Federal Low-Cost Area, delivering exceptional carpentry and personalized customer care.
His modern workshop will be clean, spacious, and equipped with advanced tools to efficiently produce wardrobes, TV stands, office furniture, kitchen cabinets, and custom pieces.
The white-painted shop will have a clear signboard and a veranda where customers can observe the craft. Aliyu envisions a welcoming, organized space that embodies his dedication and gratitude, inspiring future craftsmen through quality work and mentorship.
Aliyu Abubakar
Obstacles
Aliyu has developed his skills as an apprentice. His training focused on precision, craftsmanship, and customer-centered design.
Aliyu excels in cabinet making, wardrobes, and interior furniture like kitchen cabinets and office desks. He is proficient with hand tools and power tools such as edging and router machines, combining creativity and attention to detail to meet diverse client needs.
His biggest challenges include the high cost of tools and materials, irregular income, and supporting his family while saving for his business. Despite these obstacles, Aliyu remains committed and resourceful, now seeking external support to advance his goal.
Aliyu Abubakar
Our Partnership
Aliyu seeks mentorship, business training, funding, and help securing a physical shop from Leadership Initiatives. He also welcomes guidance on marketing and customer relationship development.
With the right tools and support, Aliyu believes he can build a furniture business that sustains his family and benefits his community.
His long-term goals include renovating his family home, achieving personal stability, and building a life that supports marriage and community growth. Aliyu hopes to offer apprenticeships to youth in Bauchi, empowering them with skills and employment. For him, true success means uplifting others and using his time meaningfully.
My Grant Proposal Presentation
As part of the International Leadership and Business Internship, I collaborated with top development experts to help grow and strengthen my business partner’s infrastructure.
At the end 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 apply our entrepreneurial skills, showcase our strategic plan, and advocate for meaningful change in our partner’s business.
Our team was awarded a grant that will fund the implementation of our business partner’s plan, providing life-changing support that will expand operations, improve 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.
My Grant Proposal
Throughout the program, we worked closely with Aliyu Abubakar Zadawa to gain a clear understanding of their business goals. Though Aliyu has 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 crafted a proposal detailing the infrastructure materials that would support the growth of their business. We devised a plan that would allow Aliyu to optimize their business through a new budget and financial tracking system.
This new budget enables Aliyu to allocate funds toward essential materials and equipment, supporting the optimization of their services. Effective financial tracking will be crucial for managing growing profits and preserving assets, ensuring the business’s long-term growth and stability.
Internship Highlights
Our business development journey began with a one-on-one Zoom meeting with our partner, Aliyu Abubakar Zadawa, and our Nigerian project coordinator. This initial conversation laid the foundation for strong collaboration and helped us better understand Aliyu’s background, family, goals for the business, and the specific challenges they were facing.
Hearing directly from Aliyu gave us 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 guided us, helping us ask the right questions and turn our ideas into meaningful, actionable strategies.
I had the unique opportunity to visit the Swedish Embassy, where I gained insight into the role of diplomacy in fostering strong relationships between Sweden and the United States.
The embassy functions as a center for international collaboration, working with partner 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 Swedish Embassy shared how they partner 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.
Throughout the internship, our team had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with top 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 Gerald Gangaram, a decorated Apache helicopter pilot & leadership expert. He gave us a crash course in leadership and decision-making, breaking down the key elements of what makes an effective leader. His insights helped us think bigger and more strategically about how to position our partner’s business for success.
With support from Mr. Gangaram and other global leaders, we sharpened our ideas, refined our strategy, and built a powerful pitch deck to present at the end of the week.
Throughout the internship, our team had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with top 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. She gave us a crash course in marketing and advertising, breaking down the key elements of what makes a campaign actually work. Her insights helped us think bigger and more strategically about how to position our partner’s business for success.
With support from Ms. Brooks and other global leaders, we sharpened our ideas, refined our strategy, and built a powerful 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.