NYAMUKA ZAMBIA LAUNCHES THE FIRST NATIONAL BUSINESS CONFERENCE

Enriching Zambia’s entrepreneurial and business spirit

Lusaka, Zambia – Some 300 entrepreneurs are expected to come together next week for a ground-breaking conference designed to share the knowledge, skills and tools that are vital for business success.

The Nyamuka Zambia National Business Conference at the Mulungushi Conference Centre in Lusaka on July 30, 2015 will enable small business men and women to learn the secrets of success from more than 50 business experts and entrepreneurs.

Under the theme ‘Entrepreneurship for Job Creation, Business Success and Profitability’, the event is a key part of the Nyamuka Zambia Business Plan Competition, which seeks to unleash entrepreneurial talent across Zambia and to promote diversity, especially by encouraging more women and young people to enter the entrepreneurial space in Zambia.

The competition was launched in March, receiving and overwhelming response with more than 550 people applying, from which 60 semi-finalists were selected last month to go forward to the next stage of the competition.

The business conference will provide entrepreneurs with the building blocks to move their businesses forward and transform them into sustainable enterprises that will create jobs, wealth, and contribute towards the growth of Zambian economy, explained Nyamuka Zambia Manager Shalin Jethi.

The conference, which is open to members of the public and costs K200, will bring together entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises to enrich their business journeys, helping them move towards becoming the transformative enterprises of tomorrow that can go on to create sustainable jobs and wealth to help grow the national economy.

“Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises are important for job creation as two-thirds of all new jobs are generated by businesses in their first five years of existence. A high rate of entrepreneurship is a sign of a healthy economy, and a thriving entrepreneurial culture will lead to more jobs being created in Zambia. Through Nyamuka Zambia we want to empower entrepreneurs to create start-ups or evolve their existing businesses into ones that can transform this nation and contribute to economic development,” said Mr Jethi.

During the one-day event business experts and leading entrepreneurs will share knowledge, skills and tools to enable participants to go away equipped and motivated for success. This will be done by networking, interacting with captains of industry and successful entrepreneurs as well as through interactive learning panel discussions and expert sessions.

The Nyamuka National Business Conference will also provide a platform for conference-goers, including semi-finalists, other entrepreneurs and growth-orientated SMEs, to interact with each other and leading entrepreneurs in Zambia, actively learning from their experiences.

The Nyamuka Zambia conference and the business plan Competition is part of the Private Enterprise Programme – Zambia (PEPZ), a five year initiative funded by the UKAID that strives to enhance productivity and competitiveness in Zambia’s private sector by strengthening the capacity of micro, small and medium enterprises to deliver inclusive economic growth.

Conference sponsors include ZANACO, the Zambia Development Agency, the Lusaka Chamber of Commerce and Cavmont Bank.