JCC readies for 2004 Innovative Entrepreneurs Awards

LAST year’s JCC Innovative Entrepreneurs Awards (IEA) 2003 were much bigger than previous years as momentum picked up behind a national drive towards developing small, micro and medium enterprise in Namibia.

At a breakfast meeting yesterday in Windhoek, the Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) and its project partner IDEA-Namibia called stakeholders to discuss previous achievements and to get the ball rolling for the 2004 competition. According to the competition organisers, 2003 featured the highest level of publicity across all media of any of the previous competitions, the successful combination of the 2001 IDEA concept and the JCC Innovative Entrepreneurs Award, 16 supporting sponsors and President Sam Nujoma presided over the culminating award ceremony.To top that, last year a record 329 entries were received for the Innovative Entrepreneurs Awards competition and its sub-category – Bright Ideas.Entries for 2002, the highest up to that point, amounted to 180.Bright Ideas was a new category introduced in 2003 to award either running businesses or bright business ideas.Innovation in service provision, was also introduced as a new category.Ten awards were given last year and a total of N$183 000 was given away as prize money.Sponsors of the competition include IDESA, GTZ, SME’s Compete, HIVOS and FES, with Namibian social partners including Ministry of Trade and Industry, NamPost, Namibia Wildlife Resorts, Bank Windhoek, NDC and the Pupkewitz Group.Media sponsors so far are the New Era, The Namibian, Die Republikein and Radio Energy.According to the competition organisers, 2003 featured the highest level of publicity across all media of any of the previous competitions, the successful combination of the 2001 IDEA concept and the JCC Innovative Entrepreneurs Award, 16 supporting sponsors and President Sam Nujoma presided over the culminating award ceremony.To top that, last year a record 329 entries were received for the Innovative Entrepreneurs Awards competition and its sub-category – Bright Ideas.Entries for 2002, the highest up to that point, amounted to 180.Bright Ideas was a new category introduced in 2003 to award either running businesses or bright business ideas.Innovation in service provision, was also introduced as a new category.Ten awards were given last year and a total of N$183 000 was given away as prize money.Sponsors of the competition include IDESA, GTZ, SME’s Compete, HIVOS and FES, with Namibian social partners including Ministry of Trade and Industry, NamPost, Namibia Wildlife Resorts, Bank Windhoek, NDC and the Pupkewitz Group.Media sponsors so far are the New Era, The Namibian, Die Republikein and Radio Energy.