As a way to revitalize the economy and revive Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs), government has set aside P950 million for the purpose.
This was said by acting Minister of Investment Trade and Industry Mabuse Pule at the launch of #PushaBW Roadshow initiative in Gaborone this week. With COVID-19 having wreaked havoc in the past two years, businesses have been affected greatly across the world with SMEs suffering a knock at the bottom of the value chain.
In 2020 government put in place the Economic Recovery and Transformation Plan (ERTP) as a response measure towards the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the key deliverables for the plan was SME development.
“Through the ERTP, government has further set aside nine hundred and fifty million pula (P950 million) towards SME development. I therefore, implore all of you to engage with these entities and avail yourselves during and beyond the Roadshow for capacity development. The effects of these events should translate into tangible results as we see more and more local products on store shelves and a steady growth of our local producers and service providers,” he said.
Pule further said: “Our SMEs were not spared from its challenges and because of their capacity; it became harder for them to find a grip in the competitive market. Initiatives as this roadshow, which brings together government and private sector to collaborate and build competitive SMEs, are imperative as they allow them to refocus and revamp production,” he said.
Pule further assured the masses the government support for local production and consumption hence the recent approval of the Economic Inclusion Law and the Public Procurement Law.
“These laws aim at empowering the citizens and decentralizing procurement for ease of doing business. The #PushaBW initiative will continue to be further supported through other initiatives with similar objectives such as Botswana Exporter Development Programme (BEDP), the Supplier Development Programme (SDP), and the SME Incubation Programme under Local Enterprise Authority. Through these initiatives, government is capacitating companies to produce competitive products to penetrate both the local and international markets,” Pule said.
