Libuseng Molato
Basotho Entreprise Development Corporation (BEDCO) awarded funding to ten small entreprises following their completion of a six-month business incubation process.
Pasa Production, Leather Sole Works and Supplies, Motz Fashion Design, Black Hair, Bara Guesthouse, LEMA Agrivets, Mabelebele Dairy Farm, Close Up, Pay Lesotho, and TNM Holdings are the entreprises that received a total of around M1.3 million during handover ceremony held at BEDCO’s offices in Maseru this week.
This is done under the Competitiveness and Financial Inclusion Project’s (CAFI) entrepreneurship hub and seed financing facility.
The initiative is meant to increase access to business support and finance for micro, small to medium entreprises (MSMEs), through providing their operators with business incubation to equip them with technical skills to run sustainable entreprises capable of tackling unemployment.
BEDCO is one of the entreprise support organisations (ESO’s) working with CAFI to help develop the technical skills of selected high-potential entreprises and to access seed financing.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, BEDCO’s executive head of enterprise development, Lemphane Lesoli, explained that the benefiiacry entreprises were selected based on their growth and passion for their entreprises, as the purpose is to accelerate their development to hire more people.
Lesoli said they were honoured to be part of the CAFI project, which helps to advance BEDCO’s mandate.
“We are expecting each of our ten enterprises to put in a serious effort to ensure they generate more revenue, more employment and make sure their businesses become strong to withstand business challenges and grow from strength to strength,” he said.
One of the beneficiaries, Sibusiso Adontši, the managing director of Leather Sole Works and Suppliers, expressed gratitude for the support from CAFI and BEDCO. He also commended the business skills they acquired during the incubation process.
“The alignment is great; it gives us a real understanding of business. And it helps us widen our focus and gives us an interest to export,” Adontši said.
