By David Wamambo

Last week, I was at a pitching competition hosted by DOLOLO supported by the Southern Africa Innovation Support Programme and National Commission on Science Research and Technology. I got there just before the program was about to commence so I was late to see the party begin but not too late to grab some snacks and say hi to a few familiar faces. One thing I already had figured out is that this was an ideal place for one to network with the fellow start up community, exchange contact details and establish relationships that could evolve into collaborations or partnerships. However, I soon realized that with most networking events people always tend to gravitate to who they are already familiar with.

By: Malulu Angula

Growing up I was raised by a resourceful and business minded set of parents. My father despite his day job as an architect still worked the garden after-hours and would sell his produce over the weekends at the local market. That was the money he would spend on household costs and save up his salary, while my mom was a teacher but also made and sold traditional butters and sauces.