SME’s
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Conference Spotlights Empowerment and Elevation of Women Entrepreneurs, Trade and Innovation
Vessels of Virtue (VOV) yesterday successfully held a conference on the Empowerment and Elevation of Women Entrepreneurs, Trade, and Innovation at the Celebration International Church in Borrowdale, Harare. In her keynote address while officially opening the conference, the Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Hon. Monica Mutsvangwa said the conference was…
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MSMEs critical to sustainable development for Zimbabwe, says Honourable Mutsvangwa
Own Correspondent The Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Honourable Senator Monica Mutsvangwa has implored Governments across the world to prioritise Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises as they are key to sustainable development and equitable distribution of resources. Addressing delegates at the 8th World Investment Forum, which took place in Abu…
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Champion Insurance Company promotes growth of MSME sector
Champion Insurance Company is promoting the growth of the micro, small to medium enterprises (MSME) sector in line with the National Development Strategy (NDS1). This came out in remarks delivered by the Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Mr. Moses Mhike at the business risk management and…
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AfCFTA, United Bank for Africa in financial partnership to boost SMEs
At the margins of the Afreximbank Annual Meeting 2023 taking place in Accra, Ghana, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat and United Bank for Africa (UBA) have signed an Agreement to provide financial support to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) within the AfCFTA in order to boost intra-Africa trade. The African Continental Free…
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Feminist Knowledge hub Zivo/Ulwazi addresses gender digital divide in Zimbabwe
The creation of the Zivo-Ulwazi Knowledge Hub is a timely intervention that will empower women and girls through accessing Information, Communication, and Technology (ICT) thereby contributing to addressing the gender digital divide in Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network and UN Women officially launched the Zivo-Ulwazi Feminist Knowledge Hub today, Thursday 8 June…
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Energy entity Power Giants scoops top award
Sowell Chikwari A leading energy and power development firm, Power Giants Southern and East Africa has received yet another feather in its cap after clinching a prestigious accolade – The best Innovative Electrical Engineering Company in Renewable Energy and Electrical Engineering at The Annual National Iconic Entrepreneurs Awards held in Harare yesterday. The vibrant and…
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‘Connected services’ transform all economies: SME Competitiveness Outlook
The International Trade Centre releases flagship report SME Competitiveness Outlook 2022: Connected Services, Competitive Businesses The SME Competitiveness Outlook 2022, released yesterday, puts the spotlight on four types of services – known as connected services – that drive transformation, regardless of economic level. The four – transport and logistics, financial services, information and communication technologies, and business and…
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A fighting chance for start-ups from the Eight2Five Hub
Being an entrepreneur is liberating. Acting on your idea. A chance to be your own boss. Sounds easy, but there is more that comes with the bold decision from the crunch of raising capital, lack of incubators and accelerators to a difficult economic environment. It is with this goal of giving start-ups a fighting chance,…
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Fish Farmers Urged to Improve Productivity, Contribute to Industry’ Growth this 2022
By Joyce Mukucha Zimbabwean fish farmers have been encouraged to work hard and yield positive results in terms of productivity and at the same time ensure that mistakes that happened in 2021 in the aquaculture sector are not repeated. In his New Year message, the Zimbabwe Productive Farmers Association (ZPFA) Chairperson of Development and Outreach…
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US$165,000 Bulawayo SMEs Centre Officially Launched
By Joyce Mukucha Recently in Bulawayo In an effort aimed at promoting decent work, better working spaces, improving productivity, access to markets and capacity development as well as improving the working conditions of those participating in the informal economy (Small to Medium Enterprises) (SMEs), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in collaboration with the Employers Confederation…
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House of Zulu and Nguni Lodge offer tourists in Victoria Falls a memorable experience
With Zimbabwe’s major tourism hub, Victoria Falls becoming an awakening giant as the resort city reached herd immunity in as far as COVID-19 is concerned, two small-to-medium enterprises (SME) sector players – House of Zulu and Nguni Lodge offer a memorable experience to tourists. To a tourist who wants a serene place to relax after…
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Victoria Falls SMEs honoured for major role in tourism ecosystem
The Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism, and Hospitality Industry and sector players honoured small enterprises in Victoria Falls for playing a key role to the tourism ecosystem, for their job-creating power, entrepreneurialism and driving sustainable development. In that regard, the tourism industry and government came together yesterday to celebrate 20 of the most promising small…
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Cross Border Traders Slam Govt For Failing To Tame Illegal Forex Deals
By Staff Writer An association of cross-border traders has blasted various government ministries for failing to curb the illicit foreign currency dealings currently affecting the country’s economy. In a statement, Zimbabwe Cross Border Traders Association (ZCBTA), secretary-general, Augustine Tawanda hailed the Ministry of Finance for putting up a fight to resolve the illegal foreign currency…
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Passion Poultry Positively Impacting Communities
By Joyce Mukucha Poultry farming has become one of the most important aspects of agriculture in Zimbabwe and beyond. Poultry production is an important and diverse component since eggs and meat are part of health and diet for larger population all over the world. The majority is venturing into this business for making money and…
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MultiChoice to connect South African SMEs with global investors
MultiChoice launches the MultiChoice Accelerator supporting the growth of 20 South African start-ups in collaboration with C3, Galelo and the DTIC. The 20 start-ups will embark on an intensive blended learning journey leading to the showcase of their solutions at Dubai’s Expo 2020. South African news channel, Newzroom Afrika, will follow the journey of the…
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UNDP collaborates with ITC to raise African business opportunities by engaging AfCFTA
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) team up to empower African small businesses, women and young entrepreneurs to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and expand cross-continental business opportunities. This joint UN initiative comes as the continent contends with the economic strain of the COVID-19 pandemic and seeks…
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Harare City Council’s demolition of vending stalls a threat to livelihoods
By Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD) In Zimbabwe’s highly informal economy where employment in the formal sector is at an all-time low with several reports suggesting that unemployment is standing above 90 percent, the recent demolitions of vending markets queries, whether our preoccupation is on order and not livelihoods. A 2018 study by…
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IOM and FCDO assisting Government to support Informal Cross-Border Traders to do business safely
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is this week conducting a visit to Chirundu and part of the Supporting Informal Cross-border Traders in Southern Africa to do Business Safely during the COVID-19 Pandemic project. Informal Cross Border Trade which accounts for up to 40% of total intra-SADC trade, with an estimated value of US$17.6 billion…
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An economy where a dollar generates ten times its value by end of the day
By Charles Dhewa The notion of financial inclusion being promoted across Africa assumes financial institutions like banks and the stock market are excluding the majority of people including SMEs from financial systems. On the contrary, having been subjected to rigid financial systems and policies for decades, SMEs and local people have developed their own financial systems that shut out…
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Informal sector hard hit by the indefinite lockdown
By the Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development The announcement of the indefinite lockdown by President E.D Mnangagwa was received with mixed feelings with some sections of the society feeling that the decision was not made after careful considerations. Nevertheless, those arguing from a public health corner considered the decision as noble in as far…
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NEPAD, Ecobank collaborate to support Africa’s Micro Small and Medium Enterprises
The African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) (www.NEPAD.org) and Ecobank Group (www.Ecobank.com) have kick-started their collaboration to strengthen Africa’s response to Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). High-level representatives from the African Union Commission, regional development banks, development financial institutions, international organisations and commercial banks from the continent came together to focus their efforts on supporting…
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SMEs Remain Positive During Lockdown
By Joyce Mukucha World over, the COVID-19 pandemic has posed negative impacts on all circles of life with the business sector not being spared. This has seen many business operators and owners including Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) struggling to ensure the continued survival of their businesses. While the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19…
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Zimbabwe Women’s Bureau to train 3 000 cross border traders
By Tatenda Mujeyi The Zimbabwe Women’s Bureau is this week hosting a training of trainers’ workshop for the women’s cross border from six districts of Zimbabwe at its office in Harare so as to familiarise them with the circumstances they may encounter beyond the borders of the country in their line of duty. “The Information…
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On World Population Day UNFPA, Government of Zimbabwe open clinic and youth centre
On World Population Day the Government of Zimbabwe and partners today officially opened Tariro Clinic and Youth Centre in the Hopley area. The facilities were constructed by City of Harare through a skills development project for young people that was supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), International Labour Organisation (ILO) and private cement…
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TEF-UNDP Sahel Youth Entrepreneurship Programme Set to Empower Entrepreneurs in 7 Sahel African Countries For 10 Years
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) have launched a youth entrepreneurship programme for the Sahel region of Africa. The TEF-UNDP Sahel Youth Entrepreneurship programme will train, mentor and financially support 100,000 young entrepreneurs in Africa in 10 years . The goal is to contribute to the overall target to…
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Youths, women urged to become drivers of green and decent jobs
By Byron Mutingwende The Simuka-Phakama 2018 Green enterPRIZE Innovation Challenge is creating a platform for green enterprise development and eco-innovation to thrive Zimbabwe by empowering the citizens and businesses, particularly the youth and women, to become drivers of green and decent jobs creation. By facilitating their access to a tailored business development programme, supported by…
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Garage and Forecourt offers ICT fuel management system
By Special correspondent A FUEL solutions technology company, Garage and Forecourt (Pvt) Ltd, is rolling out an ITC based fuel management system that it argues might be panacea to manual and less accurate fuel gauging and management currently dogging service stations. According to managing director Omalli Jani, the new system replaces convectional dipsticks used to…
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Zimnat assists families of deceased miners
Zimnat, one of the leading players in the Zimbabwean life assurance and short-term insurance industries since 1946, has donated funeral services worth $10 000 for the burial of 10 of the miners killed in the Battlefields mining disaster. The group has made the donation through Mashonaland West Province Minister of State Mary Mliswa to assist…
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Masiyiwas Put Their Money Where Their Mouth Is By Launching a $100m Rural Entrepreneurship Fund
Econet founder and executive chairman, Mr Strive Masiyiwa and his wife Tsitsi, have launched a $100m Challenge Fund to support rural entrepreneurs and other entrepreneurs focusing on rural areas in Zimbabwe as part of their extensive philanthropic work in Zimbabwe and across Africa. The fund is being financed from their personal resources and will be…
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Lawyer Rachel Chibaya inspires young women as she wins ZNCC Award
By Byron Mutingwende The Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) has awarded Ms Rachel Chibaya, the Founder and Senior Partner of R. Chibaya Law Chambers in Harare for her role in inspiring other women by providing first-class professional and comprehensive legal services to individuals and corporates. The Head of the R. Chibaya Law…
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Stop treating informal sector players with heavy handedness: ZCTU
The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has said the administration of President Emmerson Mnangagwa has started treating the people in the informal sector with heavy handedness reminiscent of the Robert Mugabe era, despite claiming to be a new government of the people. The labour body said most appalling is the way it is using…
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Stakeholders urged to create employment opportunities
By Byron Mutingwende Stakeholders have been urged to engage in employment creation for improved standards of living of the citizenry. Petronella Kagonye, the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare made the remarks at the dialogue on employment creation held in Harare on 4 April 2018. The minister alluded to President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s call…
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Swedish MPs tour Tariro Clinic and Youth Centre in Hopley
By Byron Mutingwende A delegation from the Swedish Parliament toured the Tariro Clinic and Youth Centre in Hopley to assess the impact of interventions by their government in the promotion of development in Zimbabwe. Speaking on the sidelines of the tour, Aleksander Gabelic, the President of the United Nations Association of Sweden said…
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ZTA shuts down unlicensed operators
By Joyce Mukucha and Patricia Mashiri The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) is in the process of shutting down all unlicensed and lapsed tourist facilities following one of the 100 day-initiatives by the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Prisca Mupfumira. The ultimatum was given by the then minister on the tourism stakeholder meeting on the…
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Vendors Vow to stay on the streets until grievances are addressed
By Patricia Mashiri Elias Mudzuri, the MDC-T acting President addressed vendors who vowed to stay on the streets until the government creates employment for them. Mudzuri said the present government should not chase people away from the streets until it provides decent jobs to the people. “We want modern industries which will accommodate everyone regardless…
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BitMari: Pan African technological giants contributing to economic growth
By Byron Mutingwende The Pan-African technological giants BitMari are playing an important role of assisting those in the diaspora to remit money back home at affordable rates in pursuit of growing the economy. In June 2017 BitMari partnered with the Agricultural Bank of Zimbabwe (Agribank) to integrate Bitcoin and Blockchain technology into consumer offerings.…
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Imire: Conserving rhinos, wildlife and ploughing back to the community
By Byron Mutingwende The Imire Rhino and Wildlife Conservation is one of its kind because the venture is located in the farming areas of Wedza just over 100km from Harare. Home to the big five game animals except the leopard, one cannot just but wonder at the success story of this enterprise. Arriving…
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Vendors against the 48hr ultimatum to vacate Harare CBD
By Joyce Mukucha The Vendors Initiative for Social Economic Transformation (VISET) and Citizens Manifesto urged the Government to offer vendors alternative sites to carry out their trade without arresting or prosecuting them. The two organisations condemned the ultimatum which gives vendors and pirate taxi operators 48 hours to vacate the streets in all towns and…
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Hon Betty Nhambu-Kaseke: MP with a difference
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By Byron Mutingwende Honourable Betty Nhambu-Kaseke, the Member of the House of Assembly for Kuwadzana was catapulted into Parliament on a ruling party Zanu (PF) ticket in 2015 following by-elections in the constituency but has brought considerable development in the short space of time she has been in charge of the area. Spiked Online Media…
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Going green a pathway to sustainable growth, productivity and jobs
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By Byron Mutingwende Born and bred in rural Marondera where farmers used organic farming to grow crops, Clive Nyapokoto experienced the hard and intense labour involved in the daily farm activities which sometimes he had to do before going to school in the morning. That background motivated him to come up with innovations to…
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Tourism Expo brings vibe to business
By Byron Mutingwende Bulawayo, like any other city in Zimbabwe is normally quiet mid-week save for some vendors selling their wares on the pavements and shouting on the top of their voices to attract buyers. The second largest city was the country’s industrial hub over a decade ago, but the economic malaise that started at…
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The Space creates opportunities for youths in Zimbabwe
By Patricia Mashiri and Byron Mutingwende The 3rd edition of the Space has been held in trying to address issues affecting the youths in the country. The programme has been running for three years and focuses on initiatives that empower youth coming out tertiary institutions. The programme is running under the theme “challenging power” in…
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Zimbabwe urged to embrace industrialisation in line with SADC roadmap
By Byron Mutingwende The implementation of the Action Plan for Industrialization is an initiative that should be driven at national level with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) only playing a supportive role. Speaking during the SADC Industrialisation and Strategy and Roadmap (2015-2063) workshop held at the Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare on…
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Cross borders bemoan Ecocash transaction charges by dealers
Cross border traders have lamented the sharp increase in the percentage required on the black market for them to take out their money from the Ecocash financial application. The black market exchange rate for cashing out money from Ecocash accounts has steadily risen up to 30% leading to the erosion of the profit margins, further…
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2017 Harare Agricultural Show comes as country attains food secure status
By Byron Mutingwende Preparations for the 2017 Harare Agricultural Show are exciting as they follow a successful agricultural season with food security assured, it has emerged. In his address while addressing journalists on the preparations, Dr. Anxious Masuka, the Chief Executive Officer of the Zimbabwe Agricultural Society (ZAS) said the Harare Show sought…