Basseterre, St. Kitts (SKNIS) — Ten new business ventures are being pursued by young people in St. Kitts as a result of their engagement with the Creativity for Employment and Business Opportunity (CEBO).
The programme was developed in St. Kitts by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat with support from a number of regional agencies. It was designed to engage young people and equip them with entrepreneurial knowledge and skills. A pilot in 2013 and two other subsequent workshops in St. Kitts and in Nevis by the Department of Youth were held, using the CEBO model. A number of graduates from these workshops were chosen to participate in the follow-up workshop where they fleshed out their business ideas and produced a business plan.
The five-day training was held at the NEMA Conference Room from September 14th to 18th. Topics reviewed included Business Road Map Creation, Assessing Risk, Identifying the Target Market, The Marketing Mix, Building a Balance Sheet and Financing Your Business. At the end of the session, each participant presented a draft plan to the facilitators from the CARICOM Secretariat.
Ideas looked at included organic farming and catering, interior design, creative social events and more.
Senior Youth Officer, Pierre Liburd, said he was pleased to see the Secretariat follow up on the commitment it made to the young people in support of the process.
“They took them through a week-long process of shaping their various ideas into bankable business plans that could then be presented favourably to financing institutions for support,” he said. “I would like to commend the small group of young trainees that came out and participated fully each day, including September 16th, which was a national holiday. This only helps to underscore the passions and commitment of these young people and we anticipate the very same in the pursuit of their business endeavours.”
The group is expected to spend the next few weeks fine-tuning their plans. An official from the Secretariat is expected to return in one month to assess the participant’s progress.