MSMEs urged to acquire digital skills

New Ziana (Bulawayo) -Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) should acquire digital skills to enable them to showcase and sell their products and services beyond Zimbabwe, an expert has said.

Entrepreneurship global network Empretec executive director Busisiwe Bango said this while addressing participants to a two-day training workshop for entrepreneurs held at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) exhibition centre on Wednesday.

She said digital skills are crucial in the modern world of business since the market has become a globalised village.

EMPRETEC is a flagship capacity-building programme of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) for the promotion of entrepreneurship and micro, small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) to facilitate sustainable development and inclusive growth.

The programme is part of UNCTAD’s mandate on enhancing productive capacity and international competitiveness for the benefit of economic development, poverty eradication and equal participation of developing countries and transition economies in the world economy.

“The market has become a globalised village as such we need to get a level of digital skills. Even the older entrepreneurs need to acquire those skills. Use of cell phones and computers for business are very crucial,” said Bango.

Bango said entrepreneurs can now sell or showcase their products and services beyond Zimbabwe through the use of digital platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook, adding that with the advent of the digital market platform, local entrepreneurs are now competing with the rest of the world.

“The cell phone has become a business arena and acquiring the digital skills enables you to use it for business beyond just speaking to friends and relatives,” she said.

She encouraged entrepreneurs to acquire negotiating skills to enable them to get better deals when purchasing inputs needed for producing their products.

“It is also good for you to be able to negotiate discounts with the supplier. Maybe a reduction of the price if you are going to be buying large volumes,” said explained.

In running enterprises, Bango said, there are skills and competencies that are needed, and entrepreneurs should identify those which are relevant and critical to their line of business.

“As your business grows, acquire more skills. You can have a mentor or go to institutions that offer training on those skills,” said Bango.

With funding from the European Union, EMPRETEC and its partners Welthungerilfe, WHH Zimbabwe and Bio innovation Zimbabwe has been implementing the SCOPE4IVC program, an acronym for Strengthening Competitiveness and Potential for Export for Inclusive Value Chains in Zimbabwe for the past three and half years.

The program, which is aimed at establishing new food markets in Europe, has seen many entrepreneurs being trained and it targets targeting three value chains namely chilli, marula nyimo (bambara nuts)..

It is being implemented in four districts namely Bubi in Matabeleland North, Chivi in Masvingo, Gokwe in the Midlands and Umzingwane in Matabeleland South provinces.

According to the 2021 MSEME survey, there are 2.4 million MSMEs operating in Zimbabwe employing almost 5 million people on a full-time basis.

The 2022 Finscope Survey also indicated that the sector contributed US$8.6 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of this country during Covid-19 period.

New Ziana