The Africa Federation Economic Development Board (AFED EDB) officials visited the Mohamed Enterprises (MeTL) Headquarters in Dar-es-Salaam on 5th August 2024 and were warmly received at the office by the Chairman and Founder of the MeTL Group of Companies Company, Alhaj Gulamabbas bhai Dewji, fondly known as GD.
The conversation centered around an urgent need to uplift our membership through a joint venture between Afed EDB with its constituent Jamaats and the MeTL group. This initiative aims to promote self-sufficiency; transitioning our members from dependence to inter-dependence, and ultimately to total independence.
After brainstorming various options, it was decided to embark on a pilot project with the aim of shifting some members from employment to self-employment. The Africa Federation (AFED) will facilitate this transition in collaboration with its constituent Jamaats as the delivery partner. AFED will provide the loan through the respective Jamaat to cover the initial infrastructure and a reasonable startup costs for a maximum of six (6) months and the respective Jamaat will supervise, monitor and assist EDB in collecting the repayments.
This investment will be treated as a loan, with a repayment schedule spanning thirty (30) months. MeTL will supply the products and the applicant will commence engaging into a business venture. In order to ensure prudent financial discipline and facilitate a sustainable funding model to support more families, the following terms were agreed upon:
Applicants will identify the premises, enumerate the overhead & related costs and present it to their respective Jamaats for due diligence and submission to the AFed – EDB.
Applicants will pay MeTL for stock replenishment as needed and start repaying the initial product inventory.
Applicants shall be at liberty to source products from other traders or manufacturers.
Applicants must commence repaying the AFed loan six (6) months after receiving funding, regardless of when they commence their business enterprise. Should a business start 3-4 months after receiving funding, the repayment period will still be based on the initial six-month timeline, ensuring that all applicants adhere to this schedule.
It is expected that each applicant will be fully established and will have repaid the AFED loan within the thirty-month timeframe. The repayment of the initial consignment from MeTL will be repaid upon replenishing stocks but; in any case within the first six (6) months of business. This initiative is intended to foster new entrepreneurs; establish progressive self-sufficiency and contribute to community growth.
Similar initiatives can be explored in sectors such as Electricals, Hardware, Pharmaceuticals, and Optical businesses etc.; with AFED EDB and its member Jamaats playing a crucial role in uplifting the membership across all constituent Jamaats.
It is envisaged that AFED Councilors & the EDB Representatives of the respective Jamaats will play a pivotal role in promoting this idea and will engage and encourage their Jamaats proactively to partake in this initiative. The project is aimed at uplifting the entrepreneur thereby diluting the need of Jamaat financial assistance whilst promoting a dignified livelihood to regional membership.
We take this opportunity to thank Alhaj Gulam bhai Dewji for his encouragement and support in this unique AFED EDB Project of Collaboration and creating entrepreneurship. We hope and pray that our community members will take up this offer seriously with a strong mindset and a will-power to succeed, and by extension help their families, and also the community at large, Insha’allah.
For more details, please contact the AFED EDB Secretariat at: afed.edb@africafederation.org
Secretariat
Economic Development Board
19th October 2024
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