Vuka Mentorship Programme to help young entrepreneurs

1 Jun 2012

A recent media report highlighted that almost two-thirds of South African start-up businesses fail within the first two years; a figure which the National Youth Development Agency says is one of the highest failure rates of start-up businesses in the world.

This undesirable figure could be swiftly turned around through an increased focus on educating first time entrepreneurs on various business basics. Well aware of this focus, Neosho119 has already demonstrated how first time business owners can be placed on the road to lasting enterprise success through partaking in The Vuka Mentorship Programme.

A case in point is Alinah Missouri, an entrepreneur who has been able to create a vastly improved business plan owing to skills she has garnered from partaking in the programme. "Previously, I was always unfocused about my business idea, and was trying to work on too many ventures. However, thanks to the business tools that the mentorship programme has provided me with, I have been able to focus on one idea and create short and long term goals. Subsequently, I am applying this knowledge to the creation of a successful business that is growing from strength to strength."

Creating SMEs that supply locally

Sharon Reed, CEO of Neosho119 which runs the mentorship programme, says that Missouri's personal experience reveals the difference it can make in accelerating entrepreneurial growth. "The programme ultimately aims to assist the younger generation to make their mark on the world business stage, and position South Africa as a world player."

The mentorship programme assists corporate companies to cultivate enterprise development programmes, with the ultimate aim of creating small and medium enterprises that can supply products or services locally. Neosho119 works directly with these corporates, either adding value to an existing enterprise development programme, or creating a new one, so that they in turn can help grow the communities in which they operate.

"More often than not, a company's enterprise development programmes are not producing the results that they are looking for. What makes partnering with us so unique is our measurable, audited and structured approach, which assists corporates to not only create successful programmes, but to grow their own supplier bases through the entrepreneurs they assist," Reed says.