Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play an integral part in stimulating socioeconomic development in emerging markets, and Namibia is no exception. With a conducive environment, targeted support programmes and access to empowering information, MSMEs can contribute towards the attainment of national developmental goals.
When elevating the role of MSMEs to the Presidency on 16 March 2020 during the introduction of the new government, President Hage Geingob stated MSMEs have a great potential to create jobs, thus the elevation to the Office of the President under the NIPDB.
The NIPDB is mandated, among other things, to build institutional mechanisms and to serve as the primary coordinator across all MSMEs development levers on a national level. Additionally, the Board, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, is tasked with facilitating collaborative roles between the public and private sectors in order to boost Namibia’s economic growth, expansion, and development. To achieve this mandate and create a conducive business environment in which MSMEs can flourish, it is important for the NIPDB to be fully cognisant of their needs and pain points.
It was against this background that the NIPDB embarked on a nationwide familiarisation tour last year – engaging with stakeholders including MSMEs, local and regional leaders across all 14 regions to understand their experiences, barriers to success and explore areas of collaboration. Lack of access to market intelligence, funding and markets were identified as some of the key challenges for MSMEs in the country.
To address the challenges identified as impeding factors for MSMEs growth, the NIPDB last week launched the Know2Grow campaign. With the aptly named slogan ‘accelerating MSMEs’, Know2Grow is a regional knowledge dissemination, capacity building, and networking initiative that strives to provide MSMEs with critical information including how to scale their businesses by gaining domestic and international market access.
The campaign was piloted in Gobabis in December last year and will be rolled out nationwide over the next six months. Speaking at the launch, NIPDB Chairperson and CEO, Nangula Uaandja, said the Board recognises the potential impact of MSMEs on the economy if given the opportunities that enhance their market participation. As the lead facilitating agency for MSME development in the country, Uaandja said the NIPDB has the core responsibility of bringing all stakeholders together with the common purpose of providing support to MSMEs in terms of access to funding, mentorship and training programmes and facilitating market access for locally produced products. These efforts will enable the country to build a resilient and sustainable MSMEs ecosystem.
“Knowledge is power. Therefore the NIPDB in collaboration with stakeholders from the public and private sectors is committed to facilitating the empowerment of MSMES with the right skills, knowledge and opportunities that will enable them to become active role players in building the economy of Namibia,” said Uaandja.
On his part, NIPDB’s Executive Director for MSMEs Development, Innovation & Acceleration, Dino Ballotti said to align the campaign content to the target audience needs, the Board considered the diversity of the MSMEs sector across the country.
“To ensure sustainable regional impact of K2G, the project was designed to have a sector focused approach, which highlights the economic potential of each region in Namibia,” said Ballotti.
He explained that Know2Grow had identified six industry sectors as key focus areas of the first phase of the campaign. This decision was informed by the engagements with regional leaders, who highlighted their respective regions’ economic areas of focus.
These include; textile manufacturing; agriculture, horticulture and food processing; aquaculture; electronics and information, communication & technology (ICT); renewable energy and Green Hydrogen; and pharmaceuticals.
Officially launching the campaign,
trade minister Lucia Iipumbu, commended the NIPDB for initiating the Know2Grow campaign as a vital intervention particularly in times when the economy is uncertain and businesses are under pressure due to the prolonged impact of Covid 19.
“This will surely assist many MSMEs to grow and acquire the much-needed information in terms of funding and other opportunities which will aid them to grow and access market space for their products both locally and internationally”, said Iipumbu.
Iipumbu called for collaboration between the government and private sector at all levels to ensure businesses take full advantage of various available opportunities and thus boost economic growth, achieve development plans such as the Harambee Prosperity Plan, National Development Plans and Vision 2030.
The first phase of the campaign will kick off in Karasburg on 28 February, followed by Keetmanshoop on 1 March and thereafter Bethanie (2 March 2022) and Lüderitz (3 March 2022).