The Maun Business Collective recently celebrated a major milestone, graduating 11 more entrepreneurs from Maun who have successfully completed this life-changing initiative, a stellar partnership engineered by Barefoot Business and championed by Chobe Holdings Limited as corporate sponsors.
The graduation ceremony for this second cohort unfolded at a glamorous gala event at the Sedia Hotel recently. After undergoing six months of intensive training, the accomplished entrepreneurs received their certificates, marking official recognition of their resilience and mastery of advanced enterprise skills.
Local bourse-listed giant Chobe Holdings Limited stepped forward as the foundational sponsor to ensure that the innovative vision birthed by Barefoot Business bears maximum fruit, actively funding the growth and commercial viability of local enterprises across Maun.
Delivering the keynote address, Chobe Holdings Limited Chief Executive Officer John Gibson highlighted the group’s progressive mantra of investing in the people, the environment, and Botswana, affirming that people remains at the forefront of its corporate operations.
Similarly, and with even greater emphasis, Gibson indicated that the true future of Botswana lies in its people, a vital link proving that investing in human capital today is the most powerful way to secure and elevate the economic future of the country.
This cohort, is now positioned as a trailblazing generation of corporate leaders whose expanding enterprises will directly shape the nation’s economic landscape.
The visionary co-owners of Barefoot Business, Maika Kretschmer and Vincenzo Illiano, both delivered moving, passionate accounts of this mission to elevate local business owners, enhance the commercial ecosystem of Maun, and inject vibrant, lasting value into the wider community.
They recalled the programme’s modest beginnings leading up to this second highly successful graduation, which has vastly exceeded all initial expectations since launching two years ago. This success, they noted, is a flawless testament to the results achieved when opportunity, commitment, and community synergy come together.
They further highlighted that the rigorous curriculum challenged the entrepreneurs to think differently, unlocking hidden potential across critical business pillars including strategic leadership, finance, marketing, and personal growth.
“Entrepreneurship is no longer about just starting a business; it’s about developing the capacity to respond to change, rather than to be paralysed by it, to solve problems, to lead, to recover from setbacks, and to think strategically when circumstances become difficult. Entrepreneurship has become one of the most powerful tools for personal and economic resilience, and that is why this programme matters so deeply.”
In his closing remarks, the Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana (HATAB) Chairman, Lawrence Lecha, delivered a celebratory tribute honoring both the brilliance of the Maun Business Collective and the dedication of its graduates. He highly applauded the graduates for their exceptional discipline in mastering the intensive programme while simultaneously running their thriving businesses.
Lecha commended Chobe Holdings Limited for its admirable selflessness and corporate patriotism in choosing to invest heavily in the people of Maun, the very region where the tourism group is domiciled.
The chairman concluded with a call to action, urging other major private sector players to emulate the high standard set by Chobe Holdings Limited by investing in the capacity of Maun’s people to accelerate national economic growth.
