[kictanet] Kenya ICT Board kicks off business plan training at Strathmore

[Paul Kukubo]

*Kenya ICT Board kicks off business plan training at Strathmore  ***



Business strategy training for the Tandaa Digital Content Grant shortlisted
applicants is underway at Strathmore University. The training, which runs
in batches from January 23 - February 3, 2012, seeks to impart business
knowledge to shortlisted candidates from last year's Tandaa Digital Content
Grant Call for Proposals.



Understanding how to write a business plan, price products and develop a
market penetration plan are some of the important business strategies that
all entrepreneurs must understand. But for many founders of start-up
companies in Kenya, opportunities to take courses to learn business
strategy are few and far between. Time constraints for busy business owners
and the high cost of quality business courses hinder many new entrepreneurs
from taking such classes. But the value is undeniable, as participants at
the Business Plan training sponsored by the Kenya ICT Board discovered.



"I've learnt a lot," says Graham Muhunga of SMSVoices, "Having a good idea
doesn't mean you'll make money. I'm learning to think differently about our
business." Muhunga, who represents one of the companies that was
shortlisted for the Tandaa Digital Content Grant, finds that one of the
valuable things he has learnt is the importance of research and correctly
identifying the industry their business is actually in.



"Our courses are designed to be interactive and hands-on," says Dr Monica
Kerrett, Program Director for the project at Strathmore. "Participants are
encouraged to talk about their business idea as a core part of the
curriculum. It has been refreshing to hear the participants share
challenges and give each other tips and feedback."



The Kenya ICT Board announced the top 150 applicants to the Tandaa Digital
Content Grant Call for Proposals in September 2011. This is the second
round of granting the Kenya ICT Board is offering to fund development of
digital content and services in Kenya.



The Call for Proposals for the second round of the Digital Content Grant
focused on ideas for solutions that use web and mobile technology. After
selecting the top ideas, the Kenya ICT Board is now exposing the
entrepreneurs to essential business strategies to help them design their
business plans.  After submitting complete business plans, a maximum of 40
finalists will be selected to receive grants of up to $50,000 each to
develop their digital content products.



"In the first round of the Tandaa Grant we received many good ideas from
passionate entrepreneurs," explains Kaburo Kobia, Project Manager for Local
Digital Content at the Kenya ICT Board, "But for many, the business side of
the proposals were not as strong."



In response to the challenges applicants had with developing business
plans, the Kenya ICT Board introduced the training component to the Grant
Call for Proposal process.

The Kenya ICT Board hopes that the training will not only increase the
quality of proposals received but have a lasting impact on the applicants
and equip them with skills they need to successfully grow their business.

ends

Paul Kukubo
Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board
PO Box 27150 - 00100
Nairobi, Kenya

12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street

Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960
Fax: +254 20 2211962
website: www.ict.go.ke
local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya
twitter:@tandaaKENYA
BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke
Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke


personal contacts
_______________

Cell: + 254 717 180001


skype: kukubopaul
googletalk: pkukubo
personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke
personal twitter: @pkukubo


____________________
Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub

Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT,
through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth
for socio economic enrichment
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