Business Plan Guidelines

A business plan should include the following preliminary information.

1. Brief description of project.

2. Sponsorship, management & technical assistance:

History and business of sponsors, including financial information.
Proposed management arrangements and names and curricula vitae of managers.
Description of technical arrangements and other external assistance (management, production, marketing, finance, etc.).

3. Market & sales:

Basic market orientation: local, national, regional, or export.
Projected production volumes, unit prices, sales objectives, and market share of proposed venture.
Potential users of products and distribution channels to be used.
Present sources of supply for products.
Future competition and possibility that market may be satisfied by substitute products.
Tariff protection or import restrictions affecting products.
Critical factors that determine market potential.

4. Technical feasibility, manpower, raw material resources & environment:

Brief description of manufacturing process.
Comments on special technical complexities and need for know-how and special skills.
Possible suppliers of equipment.
Availability of manpower and of infrastructure facilities (transport and communications, power, water, etc.).
Breakdown of projected operating costs by major categories of expenditures.
Source, cost, and quality of raw material supply and relations with support industries.
Import restrictions on required raw materials.
Proposed plant location in relation to suppliers, markets, infrastructure, and manpower.
Proposed plant size in comparison with other known plants.
Potential environmental issues and how these issues are addressed.

5. Investment requirements, project financing & returns:

Estimate of total project cost, broken down into land, construction, installed equipment, and working capital, indicating foreign exchange component.
Proposed financial structure of venture, indicating expected sources and terms of equity and debt financing.
Type of financing (loan, equity, quasi-equity, a combination of financial products, etc.) and amount.
Projected financial statement, information on profitability, and return on investment.
Critical factors determining profitability.

6. Government support & regulations:

Project in context of government economic development and investment program.
Specific government incentives and support available to project.
Expected contribution of project to economic development.
Outline of government regulations on exchange controls and conditions of capital entry and repatriation.

7. Timetable envisaged for project preparation & completion.