SMEs urge community to come out at Nedbank Namibian Newspaper Cup

Vendors at the Outjo Sport Stadium have called on tourists and the Outjo community to support their stalls at the ongoing Nedbank Namibian Newspaper Cup.

On the opening day, the grounds were transformed into a vibrant space for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) selling various food and beverage items.

On Friday vendors arrived to set up just before the games started, while also being the last to leave.

Some vendors, however, felt that the day did not go as expected.

Standing next to her kapana grill, Bianca Ilonga told The Namibian the day did not meet her expectations.

“Yesterday didn’t go so great. I was a bit disappointed. . . I cooked more food than I should’ve.

“I don’t know, maybe it’s because it was the first day and the start,” she says.

Ilonga remains optimistic that Saturday would be better.

“Yesterday was a bit different, but as days go on, it will change. We will see as days go on, maybe it will change. I’m hoping for better income,” she says.

Three stalls away from her, Carolla Kavendji shared Ilonga’s sentiments, highlighting that her approach could have been different.

“Yesterday was slow, just a small income, but we will try today again. Maybe we have to give people what they want and come to their level. Yesterday, we gave people something else, so we’ll go back to the basics,” Kavendji told The Namibian.

Kavendji, however, thanked Nedbank and The Namibian for the opportunity to sell her goods.

“We’re happy for the opportunity because every entrepreneur can now push their business,” she adds.

For Christoline /Gawises, however, business was good.

“The sales were very great. We didn’t expect it, but it went very good, and we expect the same today.”

/Gawises says the tournament is a rare chance to tap into a larger market.

“For us SMEs, this is a very good opportunity because we don’t have these events at Outjo often. So if we have something like this, it’s a very great opportunity to make a bit of money. So we’re grateful to The Namibian and Nedbank for this,” she notes.

COMMUNITY BENEFITS
/Gwasies, however, told The Namibian the opportunities the tournament brings along go beyond sports.

“It’s a very great opportunity for the schools to have this tournament here. We saw the improvements with the renovations of the schools. This tournament also takes our children out of the street. It gives them a lot of motivation,” she adds.

Kavendji also highlights the community benefits of the tournament.

“I’m very happy for the stadium and school upgrades. . . It’s good for the children who don’t usually go with the regional teams to the Newspaper Cup, so now they know what it feels like,” she says.

She also praises the tournament’s broader impact.

From kapana to poitjie kos, the offerings at the Nedbank Newspaper Cup are both on and off the field.