23 Mar 2022

Debswana has injected P4m into the Textile Accelerator Programme which has 34 beneficiaries comprising producers from the company’s host communities as well as nationally.

The programme, a Debswana Diamond Company, Local Enterprise Authority (LEA), Tokafala Enterprise Development Programme and Botswana Bureau of Standards collaboration,  is geared at boosting citizen-owned textile manufacturing businesses, particularly those in protective equipment and uniforms production, through capacity building, financial support and availing of market access opportunities. 

Speaking at the investment’s launch in Gaborone yesterday, Minister of Investment Trade & Industry Mr Mmusi Kgafela applauded the P4m injection describing it as a sterling example of good corporate citizenship that must be emulated.

He said it was also a response to government’s call for the business community to partner with government to improve the lives of Batswana. 

Noting that government had long pushed for Batswana’s participation in the economy,  he said ‘the textile accelerator initiative does exactly that, as we now have more local players in an industry that has been largely dominated by external entities’. 

The initiative, he stated, was established with a specific intention of rolling out holistic support processes to allow for real and lasting business development. 

With the availability of business advisory, monitoring and necessary mentorship services, SMMEs in Botswana should now think global, Minister Kgafela said.

 

He said in line with its vision of rapid expansion of entrepreneurship and enterprise development, government recognised that real economic growth at national level was largely dependent on expanding SMMEs’ space which was the major driver of the economy. 

The minister assured his audience that government would continue creating and providing legal frameworks that allowed for greater expansion of the private sector, smart partnerships, increased foreign direct investment and preferential policies for citizen-owned businesses. 

For his part, Debswana acting managing director Mr Bakani Motlhabani described the programme as a landmark project testifying to the company’s commitment ‘to empower citizens and make life brilliant in our host communities and the nation at large’. 

He said in line with the company’s 2024 One Dream, One Team business strategy aimed at creating and supporting 20 000 jobs by the end of 2024, the programme would boost PPE manufacturing and unlock significant employment creation. 

Through the programme, SMMEs were assisted in sourcing material, cutting, quality assurance and capacity building, he explained.

 The Textile Accelerator Programme dates back to 2020 when Debswana, with the assistance of LEA and Tokafala, injected P5m and engaged 60 textile operators across the country to produce over 300 000 cloth masks for employees, contractors, the police and the army as well as communities around Debswana operations. BOPA