CRDB Bank Director of Small and Medium Enterprise Banking, Bonaventura Paul (left), presents a symbolic cheque to the winner of the 16th season of the CRDB Bank Bongo Star Search, Praise Wisdom (centre) from Uganda, during the grand finale in Dar es Salaam. Looking on is Benchmark Productions Chief Executive Officer Rita Paulsen, whose company organises the competition.
Dar es Salaam. CRDB Bank has reaffirmed its commitment to nurturing young talent, promoting innovation and empowering youth to seize entrepreneurial opportunities, recognising their vital contribution to Tanzania's economic and social development.
Speaking during the grand finale of the 16th season of CRDB Bank Bongo Star Search held in Dar es Salaam over the weekend, the bank's Director of Small and Medium Enterprise Banking, Bonaventura Paul, said the competition has become an important platform for identifying, empowering and developing young artistic talent to help them realise their dreams.
"Today is not only a victory for Praise Wisdom, but also a victory for all young people in Tanzania and East Africa. We have witnessed exceptional talent, discipline, creativity and determination that enabled the finalists to reach this important stage of the competition," said Bonaventura, who officiated at the event.
The finale featured contestants from Tanzania, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Bonaventura encouraged participants to remain innovative throughout their artistic careers by producing compelling creative works, improving their performance skills and using art as a tool to educate, entertain and inspire communities on various development issues.
He said CRDB Bank would continue supporting talented young people by providing youth friendly financial services, financial literacy programmes, entrepreneurship training and access to capital to help them transform their talents into sustainable economic opportunities.
"We invite all young people with innovative ideas, projects and businesses that require financial support to partner with CRDB Bank. We believe that when talent is given the right environment, it can become a major source of employment, income generation and national development," he said.
This season marked the first partnership between CRDB Bank and Benchmark Productions, the organisers of Bongo Star Search. The competition awarded the winner a brand new car and Sh50 million in cash.
Bonaventura said Benchmark Productions' long standing success in discovering and developing young talent, while providing aspiring artists with opportunities to learn, build confidence and join the creative industry at nationally and internationally recognised standards, attracted CRDB Bank to support the initiative.
He noted that the competition's success over the past 16 years demonstrates the importance of continued investment in young people, particularly at a time when the global economy increasingly depends on innovation and the contribution of the younger generation to drive growth across various sectors.
Bonaventura also congratulated the organisers, judges, contestants and fans for making the 2026 season a success, while urging stakeholders to address existing challenges to ensure an even better competition in 2027.
Benchmark Productions Chief Executive Officer Rita Paulsen thanked the sponsors for their continued support, saying it had strengthened the organisers' commitment to reaching and empowering more young people.
"We sincerely thank CRDB Bank for partnering with us. We are committed to continuously improving the competition so that it benefits even more young people. We are confident that the bank's youth focused financial services will also create greater opportunities for our contestants through this partnership," said Rita.
