At the event conducted in Maseru on Thursday, the Prime Minister, Mr. Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane, formally unveiled the Entrepreneurship Hub and Seed Financing Facility.
Mr. Matekane Sid said during the launch that the government had made this audacious move to encourage entrepreneurship in order to assure increased economic activity in Lesotho.
As nations become more competitive and fight for a piece of the fourth Industrial Revolution, he said Lesotho cannot be left behind.
He added that the government would support entrepreneurs on their trip and that they should take advantage of the opportunities presented by globalization. He stated that with this program, they hoped to create entrepreneurs and businesses with a worldwide footprint.
He continued, saying that the Entrepreneurship Hub will direct the economy toward private sector-led economic growth, a goal held since Lesotho reestablished democracy in 1993.
According to the prime minister, local companies would be exporting goods and services to every country in the world within the next five years.
The government will continue to support programs aimed at fostering new industries and entrepreneurship, as these are the major outcomes of the National Strategic Development Plan, he added, emphasizing that the road to the future begins here.
He urged Lesotho’s entrepreneurial ecosystem to collaborate for the country’s advancement, emphasizing that the silo mentality has to be abandoned.
Rather than using the energy to create a sustainable economy, he claimed, they had wasted a lot of time fighting. He urged Start-ups, Enterprise Support Organizations, Government Ministries and Agencies, Development Partners, Academia, the Diaspora, Corporates, and all other stakeholders to make sure the initiative achieves its goals.
He concluded by saying that this is where the journey to empowering 15 Entrepreneurship Support Organizations (ESOs) and nurturing 500 start-ups begins, as well as the route to meaningful Diaspora Engagement and long-term economic growth.
At the event conducted in Maseru on Thursday, the Prime Minister, Mr. Samuel Ntsokoane Matekane, formally unveiled the Entrepreneurship Hub and Seed Financing Facility.
Mr. Matekane Sid said during the launch that the government had made this audacious move to encourage entrepreneurship in order to assure increased economic activity in Lesotho.
He added that the government would support entrepreneurs on their trip and that they should take advantage of the opportunities presented by globalization. He stated that with this program, they hoped to create entrepreneurs and businesses with a worldwide footprint.
He continued, saying that the Entrepreneurship Hub will direct the economy toward private sector-led economic growth, a goal held since Lesotho reestablished democracy in 1993.
According to the prime minister, local companies would be exporting goods and services to every country in the world within the next five years.
The government will continue to support programs aimed at fostering new industries and entrepreneurship, as these are the major outcomes of the National Strategic Development Plan, he added, emphasizing that the road to the future begins here.
He urged Lesotho’s entrepreneurial ecosystem to collaborate for the country’s advancement, emphasizing that the silo mentality has to be abandoned.
Rather than using the energy to create a sustainable economy, he claimed, they had wasted a lot of time fighting. He urged Start-ups, Enterprise Support Organizations, Government Ministries and Agencies, Development Partners, Academia, the Diaspora, Corporates, and all other stakeholders to make sure the initiative achieves its goals.
He concluded by saying that this is where the journey to empowering 15 Entrepreneurship Support Organizations (ESOs) and nurturing 500 start-ups begins, as well as the route to meaningful Diaspora Engagement and long-term economic growth.
The Entrepreneurship Hub and Seed Financing Facility is designed to strengthen the nation’s entrepreneurship ecosystems by bringing together various ecosystem players and coordinating efforts of various stakeholders in developing cogent entrepreneurship systems, according to Mr. Chaba Mokuku, CAFI Project Manager.
According to Mr. Mokuku, the goal of the CAFI project is to enhance access to credit for SMEs and entrepreneurs, particularly women and young people in the nation. He claimed that the project intends to develop the private sector and turn it into an engine of growth.
According to him, the project has a total budget of 52.5 million US dollars, of which 7.5 million is a grant and 45 million US dollars is a soft loan from the World Bank.
In congratulating the Ministry on this achievement, Mr. Yoichiro Ishihara, the Lesotho Country Representative for the World Bank, noted that the nation will always get financial support if necessary.
The concept of the entrepreneur hub, according to Mr. Ishihara, is not new; similar and related experiences may be found not only in African nations but also in Asian and Middle Eastern nations.
The recently established Seed Financing Facility and Entrepreneurship Hub were supported by the World Bank.