Aimed at actively supporting aspiring entrepreneurs who have passion and ambition but lack the necessary business skills, the IS Business Incubator will launch officially at the AITEC Southern Africa Summit to be held in Maputo on 5 and 6 December.
"In an economy that is showing one of the highest growth rates in Africa, we believe supporting the development of a better business environment is the best contribution local corporations can make to ensure that capital reaches the many opportunities that exist in Mozambique," says IS Mozambique CEO, Hermann Woithe.
"Many aspiring entrepreneurs are simply not in a position to ride the economic wave, simply due to lack of basic business skills. We believe that with entrepreneurial passion, focus and an ambitious spirit one can train a potential entrepreneur to make a success," he explains.
A nationwide competition will be announced in January 2013, inviting hopeful entrepreneurs to submit a motivation on why their business idea is a good one to be supported. A selection panel comprising participating local corporations will select the ten best submissions.
This group will then attend a weekly comprehensive, rigorous business training curriculum stretching over a period of two to three months. The training will include all the intricacies of establishing and running a successful business, ranging from strategy, marketing, bookkeeping, logistics and others. The moderators will be experts in their respective fields.
"Our vision for the IS Business Incubator is to promote a culture of entrepreneurship, innovation, sustainable growth, and stimulus to business competitiveness in Mozambique, and to support the creation of innovative ventures, and collaborate on the development and consolidation," Woithe adds.
"Our partnership with other large corporations in Mozambique is essential for the success of the endeavour, and we are currently in the process of signing up partners. With our combined input, we will grant these aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunities to taste the successes we have been experiencing," he says.
