Incubation hub opens new wing

By DALE LUMA
THE Pacifika Women Network and Trade Centre, an established incubation hub for small to medium enterprises (SMEs) in the National Capital District (NCD), has opened a new wing at a cost of K200,000.
The new wing, known as TC2 (Training centre two), is an extension from the old wing or TC1 with 18 new stalls available.
The centre’s finance manager Norman Mange said all stalls in the new wing were already occupied with another three still under construction.
“We are encouraging SMEs to come in and sell their products but the emphasis is on women,” he said.
“Basically, we categorise them into three sections, the first one is TC1, TC2 and TC3.
“In TC1, we have different categories of women who are involved in business and they market their products,” he said.
“They are involved in food, catering, fashion, clothing and selling of chemical products. The same applies in TC2, but it is still in its infancy stage so we are just building it up.
“Some women are coming in and moving out depending on the market and how many people are coming to buy from them.”
Stallholders pay different rates to rent the stalls in the different wings.
The money is put towards paying the lease for the building which is owned by Pacific Palm Properties.
“Those in TC1 are paying K1,200, stall holders in TC2 are paying K1,800 per month and those in TC3 pay K5,000 because it is a much bigger area.”
Mange said the extension of the wings plus the overall running of the facility was made possible through the rental payments by the stallholders.
He said a farmers’ market wing was also in the pipeline but would be possible with adequate funding.