Small firms need more than money

From funding a business to funding a chain

In August 2026 the Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) said it is moving from financing individual businesses to financing whole value chains. Its poultry and horticulture programmes, for example, span feed supply, veterinary services, transport, processing, packaging and retail.¹

The reasoning is practical. Money alone does not ensure success, CEDA’s caretaker chief executive told a business expo in Francistown, because many businesses fail on governance, record-keeping, pricing and market strategy. CEDA is therefore prioritising capacity building so that entrepreneurs become bankable and investment-ready. It reports putting more than P1.9 billion into the economy between 2021 and 2025, creating about 2,000 jobs a year and sustaining about 1,000 more.¹

The funding squeeze behind the shift

The agency has had less money than demand. In 2024/25 government subvention was P310 million against P500 million of project approvals, and the 2025/26 allocation was P309 million. CEDA launched a resource mobilisation project to find other sources of funding.² The Local Enterprise Authority (LEA), with P146 million for 2025/26, is working to lift the SMME contribution to GDP from 14.3% in 2018 to 17% by 2026.²

Banks are adapting too. In August 2026 Bank Gaborone and LEA agreed a three-year partnership that pairs advisory services, mentorship and incubation with business financing, financial literacy and joint clinics and investment forums.³ Across Africa, the IFC estimates the financing gap for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises at more than US$330 billion.³

What early-stage capital should do

Our reading of these developments:

• Markets before money. CEDA describes the main challenge in horticulture as a lack of structured markets, not a lack of farmers.¹ A first reliable customer does more than a larger loan.
• Systems from day one. Records, pricing discipline and reporting are what make a small firm financeable by anyone, including its next investor.
• Patient, but governed. Early-stage capital works best with clear reporting and shared targets, so that support arrives when the numbers show it is needed.

Sources

1. CEDA embraces value chain funding Botswana Daily News, 10 August 2026
2. CEDA faces funding shortfall, launches resource mobilisation project Mmegi, March 2025. Budget figures are for 2024/25 and 2025/26.
3. Bank Gaborone and LEA forge three-year partnership to expand SME finance and drive Botswana’s economic diversification Africa Sustainability Matters, 6 August 2026. The US$330 billion figure is the IFC estimate cited in the article.

This article reflects NextCap’s reading of public information as at 28 October 2026. It is for general information only and is not financial, legal or tax advice. Figures are taken from the sources listed and may have been revised since. See our disclosures.