Smedi courts students to entrepreneurship
Small and Medium Enterprises Development Institute (Smedi) has embarked on a campaign to sensitise trainee teachers in teacher’s training colleges and nursing schools to the importance of combining their jobs with entrepreneurship.
Thus far, Smedi officials have visited Lilongwe Teachers Training College (TTC), Machinga TTC, St Luke’s Nursing College and Malawi College of Health Sciences in Zomba.
Speaking in an interview after giving a lecture to over 400 trainee teachers at LTTC on Friday, Smedi public relations officer Mian Mpesi emphasised the importance of venturing into entrepreneurship to supplement incomes.
She said: “Not many people get enough salaries to keep them going the whole month. What we are encouraging the teachers and other students is to embark in any kind of business, which can bring them a little money at the end of the day.
“It does not mean that they should quit teaching, but they must combine business and their daily employment.”
Mpesi said there are a number of businesses which Malawians, including teachers, can venture into to supplement their incomes.
Lilongwe TTC acting deputy principal Lloyd Chauluka said entrepreneurship is the way to go if salaried employees are to make ends meet with ease.
“In tough economic times, we need to be creative because if salaries cannot meet all our demands we should have alternative incomes. Any business no matter how small can make a difference in our lives,” he said.
Mirriam Nkhoma, a first year student at Lilongwe TCC said she makes K3 800 per day from selling water packed in used plastic bottles.
“We buy used bottles at Livingstonia Hotel at 15 tambala. The water sells like hot cakes and the money realised from the sales make a huge difference in our household,” she said.
St Luke’s Nursing College dean of students Catherine Mambulu said the message from Smedi has come at a good time when jobs are getting scarce.
Malawi College of Health Sciences Zomba Campus principal Margaret Nkangala said students are free to embark on any business as long as it does not interfere with their studies.
