De Beers, Stanbic promote entrepreneurship mentorship impact

two of Standford Seed female beneficiaries General Manager of Dynamic Road Services Shingi Chaza and CEO of Sasa Interiors Nomsa Moyo.

The duo, leading successful entities discussed various issues relating to entrepreneurship from the perspective of women and what it takes to stay in the game.

The session gave the audience, comprising Thusang Basadi

Beneficiaries, Stanbic Bank Women Entrepreneurs, and Botswana Accountancy College students an opportunity to interact with Chaza and Moyo.

The points of discussions ranged from temperament needed to run a successful enterprise, sacrifices women need to make to be successful in entrepreneurship, and running businesses that are scalable.

DBGSS External Comms Manager, Tumie Ramsden said since 2017, De Beers Group and the Stanford

Graduate School of Business have been in partnership, 91 companies have completed the Seed Transformation Program through 2023.

According to Ramsden Southern Africa firms have consistently outperformed local benchmarks, creating a significant positive impact in the region. With compound annual revenue growth outpacing GDP growth in all three countries, approximately 2,820 jobs have been created, boasting an average annualized job growth of 15percent—a remarkable feat that surpasses the international SME benchmark of 2percent.

Moreover, 70percent of firms through Cʼ22 have reported securing capital since Seed, reflecting the tangible results of De Beers Group collaborative efforts.

Meanwhile Head of CEEP at Stanbic Bank, Kushatha Chilisa said the session is the first of many to come, with monthly mentorship sessions scheduled until October.

While this session focused on women, the initiative is open to all, with the aim of empowering entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs.

“In the coming months we will have other entrepreneurs coming to share their stories, offering master classes based on what they have learnt at Stanford Seed,” she said.

Acceler8, Stanbic Bank Incubator, is an incubator and coworking space with the sole vision of supporting entrepreneurs and youth in accessing mentorship, coaching, access to networking, markets and funding in one central place.