STANBIC Bank Zimbabwe has embarked on a series of business clinics at its incubator hub to help selected small and medium-sized enterprises to tackle the challenges they are facing and improve their business prospects and processes.
The first clinics, which have been dubbed Level-Up Business Clinics, follow the Starter-Up Incubation programme the bank inaugurated last year for about 40 entrepreneurs. Some of them are expected to benefit from the clinics.
Auxilia Kambasha, head of enterprise banking at Stanbic, emphasised the incubator hub’s role in supporting SMEs after understanding their unique challenges.
“For Stanbic Bank to identify the best interventions for entrepreneurs, we need to appreciate their challenges and their realities, such as tax compliance, market access difficulties and funding limitations,” she said.
“If a business is not registered as a company and the books are not in order, it is difficult to obtain a bank loan. If a business has employees, it follows that a human resources policy or structure is required.
“Family businesses need a clear assignment of roles and a succession plan so that the business can continue for generations to come. Where some of these things are lacking, we offer advice and training to improve the business’s capacity and prospects of success.”
Some of the entrepreneurs who attended the Starter-Up programme have begun to see an increase in revenues, while others are employing more people, Kambasha said.
The Level-Up clinics, which will continue until May, involve diagnosis and treatment, she said. The core objective is to continue building capacity for SMEs.
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There are five clinics, each dealing with a particular area, including financial management, human resources management, branding and marketing, funding and mentorship. Each clinic has six sessions.
Participants have been assigned to the two clinics judged for their needs or three at the most, Kambasha said.
“Those adjudged to have proved that they are ready to grow their businesses will have the opportunity to obtain funding from the bank. There will be three follow-up sessions after the programme has ended to assess how the businesses are doing and what further may need to be done,” the bank said.
