Unyolo touts mentorship as key enabler of business success - Malawi News | Breaking News, Politics, Business & Sports | Nyasa Times
One of the country’s leading businessvoices, Thokozani Unyolo, says emerging entrepreneursin Malawineed more of mentorship than anything else if they are to grow with impact within their niche. Unyolo speaking. . .
One of the country’s leading businessvoices, Thokozani Unyolo, says emerging entrepreneursin Malawineed more of mentorship than anything else if they are to grow with impact within their niche. Unyolo speaking during the eventThis, she said recently in Lilongwe as a keynote speaker at theGrowth Accelerator Ecosystem Event held under the theme;Beyond the Grant: The Power of Mentorship in Building Resilient Businesses,The eventprovided a valuable platform for entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses, connect with potential partners, exchange ideas, and strengthen relationships across Malawi’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. TheGrowth Accelerator (GA)is a flagship entrepreneurship support programme byUnited NationsDevelopment Programme (UNDP), designed to support high-potential, post-revenue enterprises in Malawi with the capacity to scale and deliver measurable impact. Since its inception in 2018, theGrowth Acceleratorprogramme has supported multiple cohorts of Malawian entrepreneurs through a comprehensive package oftechnical assistance, mentorship, and catalytic matching grant financing, with funding support from theKfW Development Bank and the Royal Norwegian Embassy. Through herkeynotepresentation,“The Power of Mentorship: The Roleof Mentors in Business Growth” Unyolo highlighted howgrants alone are not all what entrepreneurs need for them to penetrate the market, stay relevant,maximizerevenue andbuild legacy. “Businesses don’t grow because ideas are brilliant. They grow because people become better leaders. Mentorship shortens the distance between potential and performance,” she said while recounting how every stage of her career wasinfluenced by people who challenged, guided, and believed inher. Her pedigree, to which the personal mentorship refers to, comes at the back of a decorated career which too her to the pinnacle of institutional leadership when she served as chief executive officer at Air Cargo Malawi Limited. Further to this, she has worked for some of theworld’s renowned brands both locally and globally including The Coca-Cola company, Celtel, Zain, Airtel Malawi and Airtel Africa Group in Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, DRC, Gabon, Rwanda and Zambia and the Standard Bank/ Standard Bank Group brand in Malawi, Eswatini, Kenya, South Sudan and Ethiopia. According to Unyolo, there are five ways through which mentors can accelerate business growth for entrepreneurs. This happens through building confidence, expanding networks, avoiding costly mistakes, developing resilient leaders and improving decision making. Post event,sherecollects how she was inspired by the Growth Accelerator entrepreneurs through their personal experiences along the business trajectory. “What stood out to me during the event was the emphasis on what liesbeyond the grant. While access to finance is critical to business growth, mentorship provides entrepreneurs with an opportunity to learn from experience, challenge their thinking, build confidence, navigate difficult decisions, and access valuable networks and perspectives. It was inspiring to hear directly from Growth Accelerator entrepreneurs about their mentorship journeys and to listen to mentors share their experiences of supporting entrepreneurs through different stages of business growth. ”One of the beneficiaries, Tisungane Thomson Kamba, owner of Akhada Baskets told the local media that she was inspired with the presentations as they related to how mentorship has helpedgrowher business over the years. Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :