SMEs benefit from Pitch for Resilience programme
OPUWO - The German Development Agency’s Pitching for Resilience grant scheme programme last week selected 22 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) at Opuwo to boost their business operations amidst the aftermath of Covid-19.
The programme with SMEs Compete for 2021 commenced in Opuwo on Tuesday and ended Thursday.
Its coordinator Danny Meyer told Nampa on Friday that the programme kicked off last year with the aim of assisting struggling SMEs recover from the devastating effects of Covid-19, which forced some businesses to close and many to lose profits.
Meyer said the grants are meant to provide support for business survival during the economic downturn and to demonstrate business viability and sustainability, while also reflecting growth potential in terms of income and job creation.
‘Most of these small businesses find it difficult to access loans from commercial banks compared to the big ones, so I believe the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and its partners through the Ministry of Industrialisation and Trade and the Ministry of Finance will be able to assist these businesses to thrive,’ he said.
He added that N$25 000 will be dispersed among the 22 beneficiaries, saying the funds will not be given in hard cash to them but rather be transferred directly to suppliers of the various products, and directly to employees’ accounts for transparency purposes. He said the Pitch for Recovery team has since last year been monitoring and evaluating the beneficiaries’ businesses to make sure they were serving the right purposes.
According to Meyer, 40 businesses have benefited from the programme in the Kunene region since last year, and it is set to assist over 500 businesses by November.
Close to N$8 million will be granted in all 14 regions.
The programme, which is supported by the GIZ Promotion of Business and Economic Transformation Services (ProBATS) and commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development under the German Development Cooperation, is meant to conclude in November and covers all 14 regions.