The 10 finalists in the Nedbank Namibia Kapana Cook-Off will this year showcase their cooking skills before a large audience at the Ongwediva Trade Fair tomorrow.
Having the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off final round at the trade fair will give the finalists a chance to create networks as several business networking events, seminars and workshops are lined up, with the emphasis on resurrecting the local economy and propelling economic growth.
Now in its eighth year, this year’s edition was launched on 29 April, and 534 aspiring entrepreneurs had a chance to showcase their culinary skills.
The coastal winners are Laura Egumbo, Asnath Vetamunisa, and Nelago Nghinalune. They made it to the final from a total of 169 people who participated in the coastal tour in May.
Egumbo and Vetamunisa will be hoping that the finals at Ongwediva Trade Fair will be a lucky charm as they both have been to several finals already. Nghinalune, at 17 years old, could become the youngest winner ever of the Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition grand prize. The central area will be represented by Modestu Fenivamwe, Ester Silas, Hasheni Mandume and Simiso Nkomo. They triumphed against 175 competitors during the central round, which was held in Windhoek on 11 June.
Fenivamwe is part of a local kapana vendor – Cuzens Kapana, and is making it to the finals for the second time. He finished in second place in the 2021 edition.
Nkomo is part of Purple Fig cooking school. Its curriculum serves students who are more practically inclined.
Ebben-Ezzer Amuyangle, Johannes Haulondjamba and Cleopatra Shipanga will be hoping to use home ground advantage for the finals after the trio emerged victorious from a pool of 190 challengers who participated in the northern round at Ongwediva on 25 June.
Haulondjamba will be attempting to take advantage of the knowledge he acquired from competing in last year’s final, where he came in third. The first prize for the 2022 Nedbank Kapana Cook-Off Competition will walk away with a mobile Kapana Kitchen trailer, a Nedbank account with N$10 000 and a Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$5 000.
The second prize is a Nedbank account containing N$7 000 and a Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$3 000. A Nedbank account with N$5 000 and a Bakpro Vetkoek voucher to the value of N$2 000 will be handed to the third prize winner.
The Nedbank Kapana Cook-off is organised in collaboration with Bakpro and the Namibian Chefs Association. This year also sees the addition of Agra Namibia as a sponsor.
To date, Nedbank Namibia has committed more than N$3 000 000 to the organisation of this premier national competition, which supports the growth of small enterprises and honours authentic Namibian cuisine.
The Kapana Cook-Off competition is one of the vehicles Nedbank Namibia utilises to reach out to the small players in the market, who are aspiring to start their own venture or those who aspire to expand and formalise their operations.