BITC to holds open market in Francistown

In their spirited mission to drive and attract investment in the north, Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) opened a new office in Francistown last year.

The new office at Tati River Mall was officially opened over the weekend by Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI) Peggy Serame.

In an interview with The Voice on Wednesday, BITC Director-Business Gaorekwe Gaorekwe said, alongside the official opening ceremony they’ll also host an open market day for all parastatals under the Ministry of Investment Trade and Industry, and a few Francistown based companies to showcase their services to the public.

He said some of the notable companies include Nortex, B&M Garments and ChemTech.

Gaorekwe said as much as there was fear after the closure of Tati Mine that most businesses will collapse, there’s evidence on the ground that Francistown is still a viable business destination with countless business opportunities.

“Most of the companies in Francistown are actually looking at expanding. The good thing about setting up your business in this city is that you have an opportunity to tap into the Zambian, Zimbabwean and even the Democratic Republic of Congo markets,” he said.

The Director further told The Voice that they found it necessary to invite parastatals from their Ministry to help clear confusion about what exactly the different and many departments do.
“We’ve also invited Pride Mark companies, for the rest of the public to appreciate what exactly is #PushaBw,” added Gaorekwe.

He said the initiative has excited a lot of private companies who have been inquiring about how they can be a part of the open market.
“We’re happy with the response we’ve received thus far, because the whole reason of opening an office here was to serve our clients in the north. They no longer have to travel to Gaborone to be assisted,” he said, further adding that open markets is not a new concept to BITC.

“We used to hold roadshows, because it’s part of our mandate to sensitive Botswana about what our office does,” explained Gaorekwe.
The new office in the second city is expected to foster the spirit of entrepreneurship and help implement an investor after care programme for existing investors in the northern region.