Entrepreneur's week offers conference, expo, workshops

Now in its second year, the event forms part of Cape Town Activa, the city's broader entrepreneurship and small business development strategy. It will highlight the importance of entrepreneurship as a means of accelerating job creation, creating an inclusive economy and serve as a platform for idea sharing and partnership building.

Conference on entrepreneurship

It now incorporates an expanded three-day conference, an expo of the same duration and a range of community and satellite events. The conference will feature high profile local and international speakers, many from other emerging economies, who will examine some of the key elements required to foster an enabling environment for both existing and aspirant entrepreneurs.

"The city believes that by fashioning an economic environment in which investment grows, more jobs can be created," says Alderman Belinda Walker, mayoral committee member for economic, environmental and spatial planning. "From a destination, tourism and economic development point of view, Cape Town is a strategic hub for South Africa and Africa. With Cape Town Activa and the CTEW, every person in Africa who has a business idea and who needs a launch pad should know that they could come to Cape Town. This city must be known as having the best-developed entrepreneurship eco-system in the country."

The three-day conference looks not only to highlight some of the key factors required for a city when looking to implement an effective entrepreneurial ecosystem, but also to identify opportunities for different organisations and individuals to get involved in sustainable, entrepreneurship-fuelled growth.

"A flourishing entrepreneurial ecosystem requires input from a wide range of players - from government, to private investors to educational institutions," say Martin Feinstein of Traction, co-event organiser of CTEW. "The primary objective of this conference is to facilitate co-operation between all these role players, and initiate meaningful dialogue and debate that ultimately leads to successful solutions."

The first day of the conference focuses on understanding what policies, programmes and processes are needed to drive a successful entrepreneurial economy. The day will involve talks by a wide range of speakers both nationally and internationally who have effectively implemented successful entrepreneurial support systems.

The conference's second day will focus on Cape Town Activa, and the roles that various stakeholders, policy makers, private business owners and educational institutions can play in expediting Cape Town's entrepreneurial growth. There will be a special focus on the role that social entrepreneurs can play in solving some of the most intractable issues cities face.

The third day's programme is more hands-on with a series of workshops, seminars and how-to sessions aimed at equipping existing and aspirant entrepreneurs with practical information and knowledge to start or run a successful business. This third day is free to the public.

Expo

The new three-day CTEW Expo will incorporate a variety of presenters providing a wealth of information and support for small business owners. Exhibitors will represent a variety of sectors - from successful SMMEs looking to showcase their work and share the secrets of their success, to organisations involved in small business support and enterprise development.

A number of community and satellite events are also scheduled to take place in and around the city during this time.

"Over and above the conference and expo, a number of smaller events - from training workshops to entrepreneurial success story talks - will have the city's attention firmly centred on the vital role that small business development can play in our economy," says Gordon Metz, co-event organiser on the project management team. "CTEW aims to get people talking, and to inspire and educate a broad cross-section of the community to become involved in entrepreneurial endeavours."

This year the conference and exhibition will take place at Cape Town City Hall, in the heart of the central business district.

"Cape Town's inner-city is a fertile breeding ground for entrepreneurs and we've selected the City Hall because it is so central and accessible and will allow for maximum participation," Feinstein concluded.

For more information, go to www.ctew.co.za.