By Neo Kolane
Ten youths who won the business ideas pitching competition during the Sebabatso initiative are representing Lesotho at the annual Youth Connekt Africa summit in Kenya.
The conference started yesterday and ends on Monday next week.
The summit engages youth with leaders, policymakers, development champions and various actors on emerging development issues. It drives strong policy influence and increased investment in the creation of opportunities for young people in Africa.
This was disclosed by the minister of gender, youth and social development, Pitso Lesaoana, at a briefing session for the 10 youth delegates on Tuesday.
Lesaoana said the minister of information, communications, science, technology and innovation, Nthati Moorosi, would also attend the summit.
“The youth will take part in engagements and advertise their businesses. This is to showcase to the world that Lesotho also has the capacity to trade with other countries through its youth,” he noted.
The minister said he hopes that Lesotho will one day host the summit.
He added that prime minister Sam Matekane had promised to ease communication between young people and potential investors to get assistance to expand their businesses.
The government launched Sebabatso with the support of the United Nations to address economic hurdles faced by young entrepreneurs in the country.
The initiative seeks to promote and expedite the growth of innovative youth-driven businesses.
It also aims to prepare young people for national and international investment opportunities.
The key objectives of the Sebabatso initiative include establishing an annual national platform for youth entrepreneurs to exhibit their ventures in the presence of top officials, and empowering young innovators, especially those in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics), to propose community-centered solutions.
Collaborating with the UN and its agencies, Sebabatso also helps groom young entrepreneurs with pitching their innovations to attract investment.
The project further seeks broaden the exposure of Basotho youth to global and regional empowerment models such as the Youth Connekt initiative, which aims to inspire African youth to drive socio-economic transformation, enhance employment opportunities, and foster a strong culture of entrepreneurship and innovation.
In addition, Sebabatso aims to promote partnering with potential investors and mentors to transition youth-driven social enterprises to profit-generating entities.
