Archive for November 2019

By Daniel Mpala In its nine years the Anzisha Prize has improved in  scouting for top young entrepreneurs — and in so doing the program has seen a “tenfold” improvement in the quality of applicants, says Anzisha deputy director Melissa Mbazo-Ekpenyong. The Anzisha Prize was set up in 2010 as an initiative of the African Leadership Academy…

By Daniel Mpala From gaining traction, publicity to getting new clients, the inaugural edition of South Africa’s EDHE National Entrepreneurship Intervarsity competition finals have given some of the winners a boost with their respective businesses. Last month, four student entrepreneurs Musa Maluleka, Penang Shirindza, Denislav Marinov and Mvelo Hlope emerged the winners of the inaugural…

By Daniel Mpala For some experts, like ThreeArrows Impact Partner founder and partner Sawa Nakagawa, pitching competitions are a good way to gain experience presenting to investors. And as Rekindle Learning founder and chair Rapelang Rabana pointed out in an earlier article, competitions can be useful when it comes to building relationships and getting exposure. Entrepreneurship competitions can also help…

By Daniel Mpala Is the education curriculum currently in use in schools across Africa too rigid to support aspirant young entrepreneurs? About 35 participants at an Anzisha Scenario workshop, which was held earlier this month in Abidjan, seem to think so. The event which was hosted by iHub on 7 October included educators, incubators who…

By Daniel Mpala As 2019 races to an end, most of us have started scheming what we want to do next year. A 2015 study by Brian McCann and Govert Vroom, which was published in the International Small Business Journal, found that planning helps entrepreneurs build self-confidence as well as better gauge their chances of success more…

By Daniel Mpala How soon after they start school should African youth be taught about entrepreneurship? Junior Achievement Africa CEO Elizabeth Bintliff (pictured above) says young Africans are not getting access to skills that will enable them to become entrepreneurs early enough. “Most business education starts at tertiary education level and less than 10% of Africa’s youth…

By Daniel Mpala African governments must make the way commerce subjects are taught at school more practical for learners — to better equip them for the world of business. So says Kirsty Tromp an accounting and business studies teacher and head of entrepreneurship at Cape Town’s Springfield Convent. Tromp (pictured above, middle with Allan Gray’s Suzanne…

By Daniel Mpala Thanks to a R38 000 grant from the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) her company received last year, Nathi Lena has been able to grow sales at her marketing business by 15% to 20%. Lena (pictured above) runs Port Elizabeth based Clockworks Branding which provides graphic and web design services and branded marketing material like t-shirts, signage…

By Daniel Mpala Every month black professionals must deal with the stress of taking care of the financial needs of not only their immediate but also extended family, in what’s come to be termed the “black tax”. How does a young entrepreneur who is trying to build a company deal with this? Signature Rising Technologies founder Heather…

By Daniel Mpala How soon after they start school should African youth be taught about entrepreneurship? Junior Achievement Africa CEO Elizabeth Bintliff (pictured above) says young Africans are not getting access to skills that will enable them to become entrepreneurs early enough. “Most business education starts at tertiary education level and less than 10% of Africa’s youth…