|
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
Local business goes global
13 November 2007 By Clifford Mogotsi LOCAL entrepreneurs have been reaching for the stars since Mogale City teamed up with the Belgian Chamber of Commence for Enterprise Development through the Plato Project. The Plato Project was launched in May 2007 to bring business together and offer professional coaching to small and medium enterprises. The aim was to help businesses expand, with emphasis on levels of professionalism. Fifteen entrepreneurs were selected following a stiff application process that involved intensive scrutiny by mentors, members of the advisory committee and a co-ordinator from the Mogale City's SMMEs office, Vuyani Bekwa. Local beneficiaries were able to meet other people in the same industry and exchange work experience. Through such meetings, SMMEs consult with experts in their fields and develop business and management skills. The Plato project, known as a "Living Network", has been implemented in other municipalities - Bitou Local Municipality and Mangaung Local Municipality. During the year, says Bekwa, experts will be engaged to deal with issues raised by SMMEs. "SMMEs will also get coaching and mentorship while identifying topics that they put on the table," said Bekwa, who has been co-ordinating the project. The mentorship programme takes place over 12 months, and the experts offering advice include Monde Keebine, the brand manager at Plascon, and Yoli Malgas, branch manager from the South African Revenue Services in Krugersdorp. At the first workshop, SMMEs identified topics and raised issues such as opportunities within Mogale City, legislation and tax compliance, tender processes, marketing plans and pricing and costing. The next meeting planned for the SMMEs, according to Bekwa, will look at opportunities in Mogale City's supply chain management. The workshops prove the world is indeed a global village and the partnership being forged between local municipalities and the Belgian organisation bear testimony to the common goal of uplifting the economy, from national to regional levels.
|
SMMEs team building workshop
Related stories Plato Project offers small firms a hand Firms urged to apply for Plato Project Belgian business model gets Mogale debut
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Web development by  |
>
