DENIM wear manufacturing company, Glory International, which was forced to close shop due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 is preparing to reopen for business soon.

But this time around, the Taiwanese-owned factory will operate as an incubation hub to train and equip Basotho entrepreneurs with different skills in order to create job opportunities for such individuals and people.

This was revealed by Prime Minister Sam Matekane during his recent visit to some closed firms located at the Tikoe Industrial Area in Maseru.   

At the height of its operations, before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, Glory International had about 2 500 people under its employ.

“The plan is to use this factory as an incubation hub to train and equip Basotho entrepreneurs with different skills to create jobs for themselves and others,” Matekane reiterated during the visit.

Another factory that the PM and his delegation toured is C &Y, which has the capacity to employ 2 607 people. Likewise, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the firm was closed down in December 2021.

Matekane’s entourage comprised the Minister of Trade, Industry, Business Development, and Tourism, Mokhethi Shelile, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Lesotho National Development Corporation (LNDC), Advocate Molise Ramaile, and some senior government officials.

Matekane said the government will do its best to ensure that C&Y also reopens in order to create jobs and reduce unemployment in the country.

Lesotho, like other low-income countries around the world, was hard hit hard economically by the pandemic. The consequences of policies like the “hard Lockdown” imposed to contain the coronavirus by flattening the curve and offloading pressure on hospitals have had far-reaching economic ramifications beyond just the social isolation.