Afena to boost business reportage

Isaac Pinielo | Monday February 2, 2015 12:35

This week, the company, which provides local and international asset management services to institutional investors, hosted the Afena Business Press Club seminar in which they invited an analyst from Botswana Institute of Development Policy Analysis (BIDPA).

Afena Capital chief operations officer Sharifa Noor said the business press club is a vehicle to bridge the gap between the world of media reporting and business; and to give the public better insight.

She said this was in recognition that the media has a vibrant and increasingly important role to play in promoting business and the economic development of Botswana.

“Such promotion is our current infrastructural development, continuous citizen empowerment programmes and other measures that the government is taking to make Botswana a better place to do business,” she said.

Noor explained that for this to happen, various interventions are needed such as investment, capacity building and access to business information.

She appealed to members of the corporate world to take advantage of the forum, come forward and be accessible to business media practitioners.

She said this is necessary for the competitive positioning of the country, and the right of citizens to be informed at all times, and participate in the debate about government, business and its policies.

Noor said the Business Press Club conferences are held at the Gaborone Sun Conference room on a monthly basis. She stated that the greater majority of participants are leading local media practitioners.

“This club provides a platform for media and businesspeople alike to engage and discuss current hot topics by inviting local and international experts to speak on relevant topics in the fields of business, finance, trade and/or economics,” she said.

In providing this platform, she said that the media is able to publish articles in a well and better-informed manner in these respective fields, and thus boost business media professionalism.