Second SME expo kicks off in city

THE second annual SME Expo co-hosted by Bank Windhoek and the Development Bank of Namibia started yesterday.

It is aimed at providing a platform for small and medium enterprises to exhibit their products and services to the Namibian market. The expo at the NamPower Convention Centre in Windhoek will end tomorrow.The keynote speaker at the event, Prime Minister Nahas Angula, commended the two banks for their joint effort to provide financing to the often-marginalised SME sector.”The decision to join forces and embark on a new course is commendable and has clear benefit for the country.The SMEs are pioneers smoothing the path for others,” Angula said.To date N$53 million has been extended by Bank Windhoek and DBN to various companies participating in the yearlong SME mentorship programme.Loans are offered at a 98 per cent discount under the programme.Angula said there had been a change in banks’ responsiveness to their clients’ needs, and urged individuals who wish to venture into the business sector to put the banks to the test and make them respond to the country’s need for economic growth.”Banks are realising that wealth creation extends beyond these limitations and that it is rooted in creating client and public value,” he said.The Prime Minister further urged Namibians to shift to an entrepreneurial mindset and to create value through enterprise in order to sustain a growing population in a global, cut-throat economic environment.Bank Windhoek and the Development Bank of Namibia first joined forces in 2005 to improve SMEs’ access to finance.The expo at the NamPower Convention Centre in Windhoek will end tomorrow.The keynote speaker at the event, Prime Minister Nahas Angula, commended the two banks for their joint effort to provide financing to the often-marginalised SME sector.”The decision to join forces and embark on a new course is commendable and has clear benefit for the country.The SMEs are pioneers smoothing the path for others,” Angula said.To date N$53 million has been extended by Bank Windhoek and DBN to various companies participating in the yearlong SME mentorship programme.Loans are offered at a 98 per cent discount under the programme.Angula said there had been a change in banks’ responsiveness to their clients’ needs, and urged individuals who wish to venture into the business sector to put the banks to the test and make them respond to the country’s need for economic growth.”Banks are realising that wealth creation extends beyond these limitations and that it is rooted in creating client and public value,” he said.The Prime Minister further urged Namibians to shift to an entrepreneurial mindset and to create value through enterprise in order to sustain a growing population in a global, cut-throat economic environment.Bank Windhoek and the Development Bank of Namibia first joined forces in 2005 to improve SMEs’ access to finance.