admin
Ivan Zhakata Herald Correspondent
POSTAL and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) is playing its part in the educational transformation by promoting Innovation through the Innovation Drive Program.
POTRAZ is currently training 40 innovators whom it identified through the Innovation Drive to start and improve their businesses as the authority promotes the sustainability of innovation projects.
Speaking at the launch of the Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) training in Harare yesterday, POTRAZ Director-general Dr Gift Machengete said the Innovators’ presence signified their dedication to driving Zimbabwe’s spirit of innovation.
Dr Machengete said POTRAZ stood at the cusp of a transformative journey, aiming to position Zimbabwe as a beacon of ICT innovation, both regionally and globally. “This is not just an aspiration but a strategic blueprint, highlighted by our initiatives such as the National Innovation Acceleration Centre, a hub for creativity and entrepreneurial success,” he said.
“The Innovation Acceleration Centre acts as a vibrant ecosystem, accelerating digital entrepreneurship and fostering socio-economic inclusion. It is here that we align with the SIYB program, preparing our innovators with the skills for sustainable success.
“Capacity building is a cornerstone of the Innovation Acceleration Centre’s strategy, intersecting seamlessly with all its priority areas, especially the small to medium enterprises (SMEs) entrepreneurship growth priority area. This priority area suggests mechanisms or strategies that we will employ for the empowerment of entrepreneurship and SME growth offering socio-economic inclusion opportunities within communities.”
Dr Machengete said the SIYB training programme exemplified this comprehensive strategy equipping innovators with the skills necessary to contribute meaningfully to the nation’s key priority areas and driving forward the mission of the Innovation Acceleration Centre.
He said the training programme formed part of their strategy to stimulate economic growth and create job opportunities through innovation.
“Our trainers and master trainers bring these comprehensive training sessions to life equipping our innovators to navigate the complexities of the business landscape,” Dr Machengete said.
“Let me take this opportunity to reaffirm the government’s unwavering support for the technology entrepreneurship ecosystem. We are committed to fostering a conducive environment for innovation, supporting your journey towards success.”
International Labour Organisation (ILO) representative Mr Fortune Sithole said the truth for empowering business startups and also micro and small was in the price or in the premiums.
Mr Sithole said there was a need for innovators to look at how best they can create jobs as an institution.
“I think that is the main thrust of the ILO, the decent work agenda. How do we promote decent work with the kind of trade that you can be innovators but at the end of the day, how do we increase elements of decent work in the work that you are already doing?
“How do we ensure or how do we encompass labour issues in what you are doing as innovators because in no time you’ll be employing. So labour issues, they are also coming to be the issues of environment they also come into being. So it’s of essence that this program in a way also makes you aware of those elements although we might not get into detail,” he said.
Online Reporter