Diaspora Matters

Call for Applications: Youth Empowerment and Transformation Trust (YETT) Youth Leadership and Development Course – Winter School 15 – 22 July 2017
Deadline: COB 30 June 2017

The Youth Empowerment and Transformation Trust (YETT) is looking to develop young leaders aged 18 to 25 years who have an interest in community development? If you are a young woman or man within that age cohort, this is an opportunity for you to participate in the Youth Leadership and Development Course (Winter School 2017). If you are interested in taking part in this year’s Winter School, don’t wait, apply now!

This year’s Winter School shall commence from the 15th to the 22nd of July 2017. The venue and logistics for the course shall be disclosed to successful applicants.

To apply
To  apply for the 2017 Winter school complete the application form here and email to: winterschoolplus@gmail.com

Hard copy applications and reference forms can be posted to  7 Capri Road , Highlands, Harare.

Female applicants; participants from rural Zimbabwe aged 18-25yrs are encouraged to apply. Winter school alumni from previous years (2005- 2016) are not eligible to apply for this year’s winter school.

For enquiries contact Samantha or Emilie on 04-496 889, Mobile / Whatsapp 0775320238, +47 91701240  or 0772 993 779 or email: winterschoolplus@gmail.com

The best performing sector in Zimbabwe is arguably the Mining Sector-all you need to do to confirm this is to look at the exports receipts where the Mining sector has done well ahead of the Agriculture and other sectors such as Tourism.

So what does this mean for the Diaspora community? It means that you too can participate in the economy and one way to do this is through the provision of mining trucks and equipment! There is a shortage of mining equipment especially by the small to medium scale miners.

One therefore needs to carry out a market survey of the needs of this sector and then ship the equipment to the country. This is much better than shipping material that may be hard to sell in the current environment. Some are even entering into partnerships with local miners who lack equipment but have access to mining rights and mines. One needs to carry out thorough research and one way to do this is through joining mining forums that exist on social media such as ZBIN Mining group.

Formed in February 2015, our forum has been at the forefront of providing free business opportunity information to Zimbabweans. With a membership of 29,000 followers on Facebook and 5,000 on our Whatsapp platforms, ZBIN has provided an excellent platform for Zimbabweans to share business ideas and also network.

When we formed the forum, we had these issues in mind:

Lets assume you are based far away from home like Perth in Australia, where are you going to get information about opportunities in Zimbabwe?

If you are based in London and would like to know the daily takings that kombis bring, where are you going to get the information?

So we basically formed the forum so that our members and followers can access opportunities information free of charge. We created a platform for members to obtain information for free rather than reliance on one source of news! Every minute there are business discussions going on the ZBIN forums especially our Whatsapp groups, every minute someone is getting assistance from members or looking for information from this site.

ZBIN Initiatives

With no other forum providing information for free, our forum has managed to reach out to thousands of Zimbabweans who are locally based and those in the Diaspora. We have also managed to conduct a number of business meetings, trainings and business tours. We have also promoted a number of innovations from the forum such as the Poultry Market App that helps to link farmers of poultry and buyers.

ZBIN History

Yesterday we made history by being the first business forum in Zimbabwe to carry out a Facebook Live Broadcast! Facebook Live Broadcasts have taken Zimbabwe by storm and they have been popularised by the UK based socialite Olinda Chapel. ZBIN however is the first forum to see value in terms of networking and unlocking opportunities in the business sector.

Looking ahead we hope to make follow ups and use this facility responsibly to help in delivering our objectives of access to business information, assisting members to have access to capital and markets. We hope to carry our capacity building of the small sector businesses, carry out Diaspora Conferences, Meetings and webinars, forum key events and many more.

This is going to assist the forum in creating a solid network of members despite the fact that most of our members are located across the globe. We will however limit the number of live broadcasts with perhaps one per month as this is still a fairly new facility with most people still to appreciate it.

We therefore would like to thank the 250 viewers who were part of the live broadcast, you were part of history in the making!

Closing date: 5pm, Friday 14 July 2017 (Bonn, Germany time)

• Are you an environmentally-conscious, socially-aware journalism student?
• Are you passionate about the health of the planet’s environment and have an interest to communicate about it?
• Do you want to make a difference and engage the youth of today to care about the future of tomorrow?

Then join us at the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) 8^th General Assembly (GA) from 9 to 10 October 2017 in Vancouver (Canada) and report on the issues at the forefront of responsible forestry. 

Young people are at the centre of a sustainable future, and FSC is looking for a passionate youth correspondent who can engage their peers by covering this important event with originality, accuracy and inspiring reporting.

Background

The FSC GA 2017 is FSC’s highest decision-making body. Eight hundred participants from 70 countries – representing social, economic and environmental interests from the Global North and South – will meet in Vancouver to discuss a sustainable future for the world’s forests and the people that inhabit them. To find out more about FSC International go to https://ic.fsc.org and for more detailed information on the FSC GA 2017 go to http://ga2017.fsc.org

Two journalism students will be selected by the FSC Communications Unit to attend the GA and act as FSC Youth Correspondents – reporting for youth, by youth.

To ensure full coverage of the FSC GA 2017, roles and responsibilities for the youth correspondent could include:

• Writing, editing and feeding stories about the activities and outcomes of the FSC GA 2017, and its side events, into international, regional and local media networks and communities (ensuring equal regional media coverage).
• Attending events and roundtables in order to interview and profile key guests and delegates.
• Reporting throughout the event – getting comments and opinions from delegates that can be broadcast on various channels.
• Using a variety of tools and techniques to keep articles and other related work engaging – including taking photos and recording sound and video.

Criteria for Selection

The ideal candidate should:

• Demonstrate excellent writing skills in English.
• Be enrolled in an accredited college or university pursuing a journalism/communications degree at the time of application. Students in forestry/environmental sciences related degrees with the above required writing skills are also encouraged to apply.
• Be between the ages of 18 to 26.
• Not be working as a professional journalist at the time of the event.
• Have a good working knowledge of English (Spanish, or additional languages desirable).
• Be available to travel on and around the dates of the FSC GA 2017 (9 to 13 October 2017).
• Be in possession of a valid passport, which does not expire before 31 October 2017.
• Not have any legal reasons to be denied a visa to enter Canada.

Desirables:

• Journalistic experience (student newspapers, online contributor etc.), especially in environmental, social issues, social policy, or business reporting.

Application should include:

• CV or resume including full contact details, education, volunteer and working experience (max. 2 pages).
• A brief cover letter in English detailing why you want to be the FSC Youth Correspondent 2017 and how your experience would help you to achieve the deliverables (max. one page).
• Copies of, or links to, three examples of your work (articles, blog posts, videos etc.), preferably on environmental issues.
• Desirable: A letter supporting your application from a teacher, professor, mentor, professional journalist etc.

Closing date: 5pm, Friday, 14 July (Bonn, Germany time)

Please send all applications to communications@fsc.org with ‘FSC Youth Correspondent 2017 application’ in the header, or post your application to:

FSC Youth Correspondent 2017 Application
FSC International
Communications Unit
Charles-de-Gaulle-Straße 5
53113 Bonn Deutschland / Germany

The successful applicant will receive:

• Return flights on economy class to Vancouver
• Reimbursement of visa application fees
• Accommodation (sharing) in a hotel in Vancouver
• All meals and a small stipend will be provided

The good news from Harare is that the Government is finalising the Diaspora Strategy, this strategy will guide the government on how to engage the Diaspora, how to assess the needs of the Diaspora and ensure a win win situation. The Diaspora benefits by having their needs met, the country benefits by having formal structures to engage the Diaspora.

The Diaspora has been on average remitting close to $1Billion dollars a year. There has been a slight decline and this has been attributed to fluctuations of major currencies such as the Rand. We have written extensively about the Diaspora because the $1Billion that is being remitted is just a fraction of the potential that exists, the community has access to credit, access to markets, access to technology and access to rich networks that can benefit the country.

The $1Billion can easily rise to $2 Billion or more if the Government engages this community and acknowledge the importance and influence that they have in the country. It is also interesting to note that remittances has surpassed Direct Foreign Investment, so the community should be viewed in the same way that we view foreign investors.

We should have Diaspora -friendly policies that helps to attract more remittances in the formal channels. The Diaspora Strategy is still to be finalised and be launched but we firmly believe that the country has taken a great step by acknowledging the importance of this important sector. The National Budget has been an average of $4 Billion, the Diaspora has been providing $1 Billion, these statistics surely point to an important sector which is helping to oil the economy! The Diaspora also wants a conducive environment for investment, security of investment, rights to voting and clarity on Dual Citizenship-these issues can be ironed out through engagement.

The local television reported that a high powered delegation will be in South Africa to engage the Diaspora and this is great news. We encourage our members to attend and meaningfully engage the government officials. Its a great platform to hear of the plans that are in place to help the community by the government. We hope to see fruitful dialogues that result in more remittances and  more investment opportunities being unlocked for the betterment of Zimbabwe and the Diasporan Community.

Here  is great news for members and followers of the Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network(ZBIN), we now have offices! We have been operational since 2015  but had no physical offices of our own. We had to rely on hiring venues for meetings and conferences but now we have secured a place of our own!

Located at Rokpa Centre in Monavale, opposite the former Italian club in Harare, our offices have access to 2 resource centres which will come in handy for hosting conferences, meetings and expos by our forum of more than 30,000 members.

Open Day

We have already put in place plans for our official open day for the forum and will update our members in due course. We would like to thank our subscribed members who made the opening of offices possible.

Know your product, your customers and your investor! When investors listen to a “pitch,” establishing whether or not someone has a good business idea is the easy part. Most investors walk away because they’re not convinced they can trust you with their money. It’s really that simple. If I don’t tell you this, I will have done you a disservice. It’s nothing to be angry or bitter about.

This post must be read with the other two posts I’ve done on this subject. If you haven’t yet done so, I suggest you read them carefully, including my comments and those of your colleagues.

For those of you who missed last week, here’s a summary of Neil Patel’s first four pitching “tips”: 1) Take only ten minutes; 2) Turn your pitch into a story; 3) Be laser-focused; and 4) Explain EXACTLY what your product or service is.

Neil’s article continues with Tips #5 thru #8:

“5. Explain EXACTLY what is unique about your product or service.
If you are not producing or providing anything different from the run-of-the-mill widget, don’t even go to the meeting. Go back to your drawing board, and design something better.

6. Explain EXACTLY who your target audience is.
Use demographic and psychographic features to pinpoint your customers. Show investors a picture of a customer along with relevant data points.

7. Explain EXACTLY how you intend to acquire these customers.
Business success comes down to marketing. If you have a marketing idea, method, technique or process, this is your chance to showcase it. Contrary to pithy maxims, great products don’t sell themselves. You sell the product. To be persuaded, investors have to see an airtight strategy for getting the product to market.

Most VCs are well aware of the advantages of digital marketing and won’t take a second glance at a product that isn’t backed by a tactical plan for online marketing.

8. Explain your revenue model.
Investors invest because they want to make a return on that investment. An investor will care about your pitch if you can answer this question: ‘How will my company make you rich?’

The answer, in investor-speak, is your revenue model. Specifically identify which type of revenue model you are embracing, and how you intend to apply it. . .”

***

__By now you know that one of my favorite TV shows of all time is Shark Tank. I hope Neil’s excellent tips #1 thru #8 are preparing YOU to “swim with the sharks”! In my comments last week, I drew your attention over and over again to the need for you to understand investors. When you do your pitch, you must remember:

# Investors are not donors.

# Investors are not tourists.

# Investors are not philanthropists or charities.

# Investors have options.

If you have the opportunity to pitch to an investor, consider it a privilege rather than an entitlement:

# A good investor will never put money into a venture run by someone who comes across as arrogant, cocky or argumentative.

# A good investor will never put money behind someone who is dishonest, corrupt, or a thief. If you have a tendency for dishonesty or misuse of other people’s money, a good investor will find out before they give you a cent!

# A good investor will not put money behind someone who is careless or disorganized.

# A good investor will not invest in someone who is highly emotional. Being passionate is one thing, but being emotional is not acceptable!

# A good investor will not invest in someone who is political. You should understand the politics of your country from an economic perspective, but not come across as an active participant in politics.

Being a good investor is very hard!

__Your job is to show them that you can be trusted with someone else’s money.

The Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network forum is a forum that values continuous improvement, the Japanese call it Kaizen! We are always researching and coming up with new innovative ways to help our members.

One area we have been looking at is Women Empowerment, our forum  is made up of more than 50% women and this compels us to always research on programmes that empower them. We have covered Agriculture, Baking and Cooking as a business and now we have an exciting programme-tapestry!

A first of its kind in Zimbabwe, members and followers should be able to make rugs for sale. This will earn extra income for our members, save or earn forex for the country. Training is going to happen at our offices in Monavale on selected weekends. We will roll out the trainings to members in Bulawayo, Mutare, Gweru and other areas.

If you are interested then we urge you to keep watching your favourite business site for more updates.

The Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network has got great plans underway-we are planning of a Grand Opening event for the forum! Having been in existence for over 2 years, this will be a great platform to open up the forum to the public.

We are looking at inviting everyone who is a member of this forum and those who have been following  us. A chance for you to mix and mingle with ZBIN Board members, Management staff and subscribed members.

The most popular and followed business forum will open its doors for the first time and this provides you with a chance for  to ask questions and be answered. A great chance for members to bring friends and show them proudly that ‘you formed ZBIN” Kuti tisu takagadzira forum ye 30,000 members sekutamba sekuseka!

There is no better way to celebrate the official launch of the forum and our offices than to have you visit our new offices! We hope to have some of our experts whom you will meet face to face and engage in discussions. They will tackle sectors such as Online Forex Trading, Poultry, Agro-business, Baking, Mining, Rabbit Rearing, Company Registrations, Website Developments and Mozambique Opportunities.

Chance to appreciate this website

Did you know that developing a website is an easy process? Did you know that you too can develop one even without training? We will show you how to easily develop one. This website will be available for you so that you can know everything that happens behind the scenes-the easy set up, the statistics and you can also try your hand at writing an article and publishing your first website post.

Preparation

Come prepared for this important event, bring business cards or promotional material for your business so that we can share with hundreds of members expected to visit us. Come prepared to talk about your business and network with others.

We hope to have a number of handouts and newsletters covering some of our most popular articles. We will tell you update you with more details once we have finalized the dates.

Understanding the art of demand and supply in agriculture is very important, perhaps a little more important in fresh farm produce than other sectors. If you have been in the agricultural business or are intending to get into this business then you will find this article to be of great value -think of this as a little crash course in agribusiness. Have you ever wondered why a crate of tomatoes is selling at $18 when just a few weeks ago it was selling for 4 times less that amount?Well, the power of demand and supply has a lot to do with it.

The demand for cabbages, tomatoes,onions and other produce is to a great extent constant, but however the instability in supply tends to push the prices up or down. The causes of these fluctuations in Zimbabwe is largely due to changes in season as some crops do best in winter e,g Onions whilst some crops do well in summer. Supply to the market tends to be high when many farmers are harvesting their crop as well hence the knowledge to know when to strategically plant ,harvest and sell is key to running a successful enterprise as producing quality crop in the field is just half the battle, the other half is being able to sell the produce profitably.

What can the farmer do to enjoy better prices?

Those of you who are already in the business have at some point taken their produce very high quality produce be it tomatoes, cabbages etc to Mbare Musika vegetable market and found the market flooded with the same crop and the prices so low you almost collapse. Well the key to this is if you  have the capacity to plant off-season you should do so. This will shift the reliance on rain-fed cropping and create better market prospects for the farmer, as an innovative farmer you may consider investing in that green house , or drip irrigation kit to protect your crop from the elements and produce quality crop.

Second, farmers can try holding on to their produce for much longer. This would involve postponing harvesting for several more weeks as one awaits the prices to stabilise. This is an option only if the crop has good keeping qualities such as butternut however for crops such as cabbages and tomatoes this method is not advisable as the losses can be tremendous.

Contract farming as an option.

Farmers can adopt contract farming. In contract farming, the farmer agrees to sell their produce upon maturity to a specific buyer at a specific price. The advantage to contract farming is that the farmer is assured of a specific price. However, he/she might get a ‘raw deal’ if the free market price will be higher than the price agreed in the contract it’s a risk worth taking though. Contracts to supply can be between markets such as schools, prisons, churches, hotels, etc those.

Bypass the middle man

Farmers can also try to bypass the middlemen ’makoronyera’ as they are affectionately known at MbareMusika and take their produce directly to the market. Some of the middle man have actually done very well or are doing well  more than the farmer who is producing the crop. These guys know very well the dynamics of the market especially the issues of demand and supply. Depending on the amount of produce that you deliver to the market it might be worthy to carry out market investigations before sending your produce to the market so that you know the prevailing prices and conditions, but it is worth trying all the same.

Value addition

Adding value to your produce is one of the options that help improve your profit. I remember receiving input at a recent workshop on mushroom production whereby the farmer was producing and selling their mushroom to a certain supermarket in Harare at 2 USD/Kg whilst the supermarket would sell the same mushrooms cleaned and  packaged nicely at 4.50 USD/Kg. When we sat down and did the calculations the packaging only cost 35c/pack so the shop made more than 100% profit all because of 35c packaging sounds crazy right? Well that’s how business is made out there, so next time before you sell your produce how about thinking of value addition for maximum profits.

Emmanuel D.N Dube is the senior agronomist at Agro Aid Trust and Chief Agronomist at ZBIN. If you have any questions you can email him agroaidtrustzimbabwe@gmail.com /+263783 495 396