Small Business Associaiton helps disatvantaged local business leaders

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The SBA will offer business owners guidance at a free Mentor Protégé Match Making Conference Thursday.

Among those looking for help are Gabriel Okafor and Ike Nwabuonwu. They are best friend from Nigeria that started a company Alpha Energy and Electric. They help design and install energy and electric systems throughout the city. They also work on several green projects to make local buildings more efficient.

Okafor and Nwabuonwu hope the SBA will help them leverage their capital to better market themselves. They say their small business creates local jobs.

"For small businesses like ours, a new contract directly translates to jobs. Unlike big business, where it may take a while to go through the system, for us, when we get a job, it translates automatically into jobs,” said Okafor.

The event will be held at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown at 200 West 12th Street. The general session will start at 9 a.m. and the business matchmaking session will begin at 1 p.m.