25 Sep 2018

 Assistant Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Mr Moiseraele Goya has commended organisers of Sphalabanyana Mega Business Expo for creating a marketing and promotion platform for Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) in Palapye. 

Speaking at the three-day expo, the first to be held in the village, Mr Goya said it gave SMMEs the opportunity to market and showcase their products and services. 

Held under the theme;  Accelerating Your Position in the Value Add Chain, he said the expo was conceived in recognition of the budding economic opportunities in Palapye, a village regarded as the future industrial hub of Botswana. 

Due to the envisaged multimillion projects earmarked for Palapye, the fastest growing village in Botswana, it was expected to experience an exponential increase by the next population census in 2021. 

He said the many development projects taking place in Palapye gave the village the status of a town and was already on its way to becoming a city. 

“There is an influx of new companies and establishment of businesses in the informal sector and it also attracts a lot of investors, even retailers,” the assistant minister said. 

Further, Mr Goya, who is also Palapye MP, said the expo would provide SMMEs with an opportunity to capture prospective clients and customers in a well-facilitated environment and help them tackle challenges while harnessing opportunities in the current environment. 

He urged the business community to take advantage of every opportunity that availed itself, whether locally or regionally. 

Mr Goya urged his listeners to take advantage of the situation by procuring the necessary equipment from South Africa now while the Rand was still weak. 

He appealed to the organisers of the event to work together to grow the initiative and make it an annual event. 

Welcoming guests, Kgosi Michael Maforaga said the initiative was a welcome development, which would help the village grow and become an attractive location for investors. 

Kgosi Maforaga said the platform, characterised by bringing together the business community under one roof, gave them the opportunity to share ideas. ENDS