BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (NPC)
Business Development is a strategic growth capability — critical to revenue, partnerships and resilience
Join Southern Africa’s largest BD community whether you’re participating in opportunities or structuring them professionally.
Business Development
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A world-renowned venture capitalist
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We enable Economic Participation
Most businesses lack the ability to find and develop large opportunities strategically
BDASA connects you with:
- Qualified opportunities
- Practical learning
- Strategic connections
What we achieve:
- Growth acceleration
- More and better deals
- Recognition and professional credibility
Associates
Access opportunity
Professional Associates
Develop opportunities
Start as an Associate
Leverage our network to build your opportunities.
✔ Targeted introductions to high-value BD opportunities
✔ AI-assisted B2B matchmaking (identify potential customers, suppliers and partners.)
✔ Access to expert insights & knowledge
✔ Deep business network — curated for growth
✔ Unlimited access to core BD learning content
Africa’s Dedicated Business Development Community
BDASA is a professional association dedicated to advancing business development in Southern Africa
through practical learning, professional standards and structured opportunity discovery.
Build your
Business Network
A curated network of founders, executives and certified practitioners actively structuring growth.
Warm
Introductions
Structured, relevance-driven introductions within a governed professional ecosystem — not random referrals.
AI-Assisted Networking
Intelligent opportunity discovery supported by structured business development methodology — increasing alignment and conversion quality.
Unlimited Access
to Resources
Access 140+ structured BD courses, frameworks and masterclasses — aligned to global standards through BDASA’s partnership with GBDA.
Ask an Expert
Engage with recognised BD practitioners and certified professionals — not generic advisors.
Community Sharing
Participate in a professional body shaping the future of business development in Africa.
Associate Structure to Fit Every Need
Associate
For BD professionals, founders and executives seeking access to structured opportunities.
- You participate in the ecosystem.
- Access opportunities, tools and learning without applying for professional practitioner status.
What You Get
1. Access the BD Job Board
- Explore business development vacancies and connect directly with hiring employers across Southern Africa.
2. Access Targeted Opportunity Matching and Monitoring (TOM) system.
- Complete your company profile to activate opportunity discovery and introductions.
3. Business Development Tools & Frameworks
- Access templates, methods and core BDASA resource libraries.
4. Community & Visibility
- Engage with the BDASA network and gain exposure through community channels.
5. Learning & Development
- Online training content, webinars, masterclasses and roundtables.
Association Fee
- Individual: R950 per year
- Business enrolment: R750 per person, per year (minimum 5 associates)
👉 Best for BD practitioners, executives and founders seeking business opportunities, practical learning and professional connections.
Professional Associate*
For BD practitioners who want to originate, structure and monetise business opportunities.
- You don’t just access opportunity.
- You facilitate it.
- You develop professionally
What You Get
1. Access the BD Job Board
- Explore business development vacancies and connect directly with hiring employers across Southern Africa.
2. Licensed TOM Facilitator
- Develop your ability to support opportunity development and capital structuring as an independent associate.
3. Licensed Business Development Tools & Frameworks Practitioner
- Use and resell proprietary BDASA practise framework.
4. Pipeline Access (Community & Visibility)
- Eligible to receive leads to support or lead structuring of opportunities such as:
- Off-take agreements
- Strategic partnerships
- Joint ventures
- M&A opportunities
5.1 Certified Business Development Professional (BDP)*
- Formal credential aligned to global professional standards.
5.2 Ongoing Professional Development
- Strengthen your knowledge, skills and professional practise.
5.3 Professional Recognition & Authority
- Eligibility for advisory panels, speaking roles and leadership participation.
Professional Association Fee
- Individual: R2,300 annually (or R230 monthly)*
- *Optional: BDP Certification from GBDA.org, associate price: $420
👉 Ideal if originate, structure, facilitate and monetise business opportunities.
* Professional Association status is granted upon application or nomination, subject to formal review by the Standards Committee and Board approval.
Company Centre of Experts
Option 2-
Get a company branded Centre of Experts and 25% discount on Experts selected
(Per quotation depending on Experts selected)
Customised solutions
Option 3-
Add your company’s content to your company branded Centre of Experts
(per quotation)
Join the BDASA community on LinkedIn
Sponsors and Partners
Business Development is a strategic growth capability — critical to revenue, partnerships and resilience
The BDASA Story...
Formalising Business Development in Africa
Business Development drives partnerships, market expansion, capital formation and long-term growth.
Yet across Africa, it has remained largely informal.
- It is often confused with sales.
- It is practised without shared standards.
- It depends on personal networks rather than structured systems.
And despite being one of the most powerful growth levers available to businesses, it lacks professional recognition.
BDASA exists to change that.
The Business Development Association of Southern Africa is the first dedicated professional body for Business Development on the continent — created to formalise, professionalise and scale the discipline.
We are building the infrastructure that Business Development has historically lacked:
- Structured methodologies
- Professional standards and ethics
- Recognised certification pathways
- Governed opportunity systems
- A connected community of practitioners and growth-oriented companies
In partnership with the Global Business Development Association (GBDA), BDASA provides access to globally aligned credentials while anchoring the profession locally in Africa’s growth economy.
This is not a networking club.
It is a professional body.
Associates participate in structured opportunity systems and learning pathways.
Professional Associates operate within a governed framework — licensed, credentialed and accountable to recognised standards.
Our objective is clear:
To establish Business Development as a recognised, structured and respected profession in Africa — capable of systematically shaping partnerships, joint ventures, strategic alliances and market expansion.
As finance has its institutes, and project management has its global standards, Business Development now has its institutional home.
BDASA: Business Development in Action.
Why not tell us what you think?
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN AFRICA NPC
Registration No. 2026/070799/08