Alumnus forms African Economic Development Solutions
Gene Gelgelu M’08, D’22 knew, while he was finalizing his MBA at Saint Mary’s, that it was time to do something new — something that would be life changing not only for him, but for others.
“I always knew I wanted to start a nonprofit to help people in the community,” he said. “But it’s hard to leave a full-time job, but being in school gives you the opportunity to think outside of the box.”
He formed African Economic Development Solutions nonprofit organization (www.aedsmn.org), and it’s been changing lives ever since.
The organization has three pillars including the Business Development Service, which includes a 12-week business development training program, designed for start-ups or expanding businesses. They also support clients in marketing, pro-bono attorney support, and financial support. “When they come to us for a loan, we say the loan is not first, the loan is third after training, TA (technical assistance), then lending. We are a package,” he said, adding as of 2024, the organization has disbursed $2.07 million in loans, and 65 percent of those they serve are women.
“When you look back at the past 17 years, to impact someone’s life. This is incredible,” he said. “This is incredible to see the people who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity to start their own business, their future. It really feels great when you have a chance to be part of people’s success.”
Gelgelu tells the story of a woman who was a refugee from Ethiopia who had been working as a housekeeper in hotels and a cook but whose dream it was to start her own restaurant. “She saved money for years, and she found the space, and she had a consultant to help her out, but because of language, it did not work out,” he said. “Someone said work with Gene, and they gave her my cell phone number. It was April 2012 when I saw her. I saw her passion. I saw her drive. I saw her energy. Also I saw her gap, which was to deal with the city government. So it was an opportunity for me to fill in that gap.”
Gelgelu said in our lives, we all depend on someone to fill in gaps, and he sees opportunities to serve in that role. “I jumped and worked with the city. We were able to open a restaurant by June of 2012 and serve beer and wine.” When the woman needed to expand her revenue by acquiring a liquor license, he again worked with her to find funding to make necessary renovations. Now, two years ago, she expanded to two locations, with restaurants in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, over a million-dollar project. “This time we financed it ourselves,” he said, “And she has helped get jobs for others, people who find it hard to get jobs. She’s providing critical job opportunities for people in the community. That’s really true wealth, lifting people out of poverty, giving people a chance. That is investing in life. I am fortunate enough to be part of this,” Gelgelu said.
The second pillar of African Economic Development Solutions is housing assistance for those who want to buy their first home, combined with an eight-hour education class and financial housing counseling.
And the third pillar is community building, which includes the Little Africa art festival in Saint Paul in August, which brings a diverse community together to celebrate and appreciate the diversity of the community through music, food, art, and dance. It’s grown to 10,000 people with an online presence of 1 million attendees.
“We cannot accommodate the number of artists who come to perform and the vendors’ food was sold out; that’s incredible,” he said.
“It’s making a place where people connect and build relationships and not just African immigrants. This festival is for everyone. It’s a way of creating a vibrancy, and what we are really learning over the years is that it’s impacting the fabric of society. They are immersing with their own cultures although far away from their homes. Where they fit in the fabric of society, they invest. Their young succeed in life because they see they are part of the bigger picture, and they are learning their culture and appreciating their culture.”
Also part of community building, his organization holds the National African Leadership Conference, which has a goal of building a network of leaders across the U.S. The conference focuses on women leadership, youth leadership, health and wellness, lending, and a variety of topics, and various speakers are recruited, forums are held, and the Leadership Award is given out on a national level.
Gelgelu said his time at Saint Mary’s has helped him to expand his work. “The literature review that I did for my doctorate has already blended with practical experience on the ground. The organization grew double after my doctorate,” he said.
He first chose Saint Mary’s for his MBA because he was looking for somewhere that would be accommodating for a working adult and somewhere that was also affordable. “The experience was a great experience. The size of the class was not huge so there was an intimate experience that you were building. Any support you needed, it was working together and learning from each other and sharing experiences. It was more than a class.” When he received a BUSH Fellowship, he knew he would return to Saint Mary’s for his Doctor of Education in Leadership.
Why is Gelgelu invested?
“The value added at Saint Mary’s is the education about ethics. … At the core, the biggest part of the school is teaching people business ethics, the moral value of being human. It’s not about making profit but having a moral ethos. That’s the biggest value.”
