PowerHouse International Church hosts successful first-ever Church led financial summit
PowerHouse International Church partnered reputable experts to hold a first-ever financial summit organised by a church, which was held at Golden Peacock in Blantyre on Saturday — aimed at equipping congregants and the rest of the citizenry with vast knowledge regarding how to make, save and spend money.
One of the guest speakers, Victoria Nkhoma — a fellow at Association of Certified Chartered Accountants — encouraged the participants to have a road map on how they are going to execute the business they have chosen to obtain success in their businesses.
“Any business idea you can think of venturing in, make sure to have a formal business plan and do a proper market research.
“This will help to determine whether you will be making profit and to avoid doing something which will not be profitable,” she said.
Another guest speaker, Kondwani Kachamba Ngwira — who is founder and chief executive officer (CEO) for Project Innovation Centre (PIC) — equipped the participants with knowledge on how to produce various products such as chicken feed, milk powder, sugar and cement as one way of making money to improve their livelihoods.
“People usually make losses in business because they lack such trainings,” he said. “For instance, poultry farming feed is expensive, making it difficult for one to attain a huge profit.”
Host of the summit, Benedicto Nkhoma — a former top executive for NBS Bank, who retired after 29 years of service — advised the delegates not to set up themselves for poverty while encouraging them to start dreaming big and prioritise their time on the things they want to achieve in life.
“It takes determination for one to achieve big dreams,” he said. “Let us all teach ourselves to work with our hands and mind and face the reality for a better tomorrow.
“Most people fear to start a business of some kind for fear of the unknown. This fear holds back people from starting new business or something they could have been generating some income from,” Rev. Nkhoma said.
In her remarks, High Court judge, Justice Anneline Kanthambi advised people not to use shortcuts to acquire wealth in life as one way of joining the national fight against corruption in the country.
“For instance, people should stop the act of smuggling goods as it contributes to poverty because the practice limits the country from getting developed,” Justice Kanthambi said.
At a press conference to announce the summit, Reverend Dr. Clement Nkhoma said the decision was made since “there there is a high percent of people, who are struggling with the financial issues by both Christians or non-Christians”.
“There have been several cases of people committing suicide after failing to cope with their financial challenges, thinking that it is the best solution to run away from such challenges — which is a worrisome issue.
“As a Church, we need to take responsibility to make sure that people improve their financial statuses,” the Reverend said, adding that many Malawians are struggling to make ends meet due to skyrocketing financial challenges in the country.
Observers are, however, suggesting meaningful businesses and investments as a viable way to bail out the country from the current economic crisis.
There have been many wealth creation conferences over the past year but not from the religious leadership but in November, when Blantyre City Presbytery of the CCAP joined efforts for swift action to address the alarming increase of suicide cases in the country, Vice-Presbytery Moderator Rev. Oswald Chinyama said the Church takes cognizance that suicides are due to financial stress.
Thus in their sermons, they advocate for a healthy church that include spiritual, religious and physical as well as giving messages of hope on how their flock can uplift their lives financially.
Adding credence, Presbytery Clerk, Rev Bruno Chipewa had said: “Of the many problems citizens may be going through, we believe there is something positive that can be worked on.
“The Presbytery, through its congregations, provides her members with hope, optimism, self-esteem and contentment amidst worldly challenges such as stress from financial challenges and other mental related issues.”—Additional reporting by Duncan Mlanjira, Nyasa Times
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