…as Trust marks 30 years of existence
Deputy Minister of Industrialisation and Trade, Verna Sinimbo has called on the private and public sector to support Penduka Trust in order to keep its doors open by hosting workshops, conferences, and team building exercises, using the restaurant, pedal boat rides and accommodation facilities.
Speaking at the 30 year anniversary of the Trust, Sinimbo highlighted that organizations can also partner with Penduka on special social programs and new projects the organization is involved with, like the “adult diaper project” the organization is planning on, by becoming involved with funding and or expertise.
“Penduka already has the infrastructure and machinery to undertake this,” Sinimbo said.
Penduka was founded in 1992 by Dutch anthropologist Christien Roos & her first board member, Martha Muulyau. The two women shared a history dating back to at Ehafo, a former organization that assisted people with disabilities to acquire critical skills to assimilate (integrate) as best possible into the Namibian society.
Penduka was established with the sole aim of developing creative potential amongst women, hence the very unique arts Penduka makes. Penduka has been running strong for the past 30 years. At the core of this drive is to eradicate poverty and social challenges among vulnerable woman in Namibia.
“Permit me to highlight that the woman of Penduka firmly believe that sustainable economies is developed from businesses which operates fairly and ethically and strives to maximize social impact alongside economic returns for beneficiaries. As a result, woman who have accrued the necessary entrepreneurial skills are encouraged and continuously supported to start up their own enterprise. Looking forward, Penduka wishes to expand their operations by increasing the number of woman benefitting from their initiatives while at the same time serving as a community Centre and networking hub giving out advice on health, nutrition, family matters, recycling, alternative energy etc.,” Sinimbo further stated taking the opportunity to share that the Ministry of Industrialization and Trade foresees a great relationship with Penduka through the Ministry’s EMPRETEC Program.
“In 2019, as a Ministry, we officially launched the Entrepreneurship and Technology (EMPRETEC) Namibia programme. The overall goal for EMPRETEC Namibia is to bring about a transformational change in unleashing the growth potential of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in Namibia through entrepreneurial mind-set change and skills training; as well as provision of a comprehensive range of business advisory services.
“These will be achieved through using best practice of the EMPRETEC model, which has been established under the EMPRETEC framework of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) initiative. So far, 105 entrepreneurs were successfully trained; the participants came from all the14 regions. I would like to invite and encourage and sensitize the women and youths of Penduka to apply for this training, the applications are available on the website of the Ministry with such great initiative undertaking at Penduka our Ministry is indeed an open door to assist and offer entrepreneurial skills training,” Sinimbo said.