Saint Lucia: Ministry of Commerce to host opening ceremony for SBDC YEA

Saint Lucia: Commerce, Manufacturing, Business Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Ministry, through its Small Business Development Centre (SBDC), will be hosting an opening ceremony for its inaugural SBDC Young Entrepreneurs in Action (SBDC YEA!) Programme. The SBDC YEA! is a two-year summer job attachment programme designed to equip secondary school students with the various entrepreneurial skills to set up their own businesses. The ceremony will be organized on August 2, 2022 (Tuesday), from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at the Finance Administrative Centre, Pointe Seraphine, Castries.

In today’s society, many young people face unemployment leading to fewer career development opportunities, lower wage levels, poorer prospects for better jobs, and ultimately lower pensions. As a result, this not only affects the youth but the society at large, leading to an increase in crime and poverty. Therefore, the programme aims to empower students with the knowledge and skills to develop innovative and creative business ideas through work-based learning experiences such as apprenticeship, mentorship, internship and job shadowing across a range of sectors. The vision is for our youth to opt for self-employment when determining their career path.

The SBDC Young Entrepreneurs in Action (SBDC YEA!) the programme commences in August 2022. The core objectives include:

• To promote an entrepreneurial culture and hands-on experience among the youth, in particular secondary school students from Forms 4 to 5.
• To serve as an entrepreneurship programme to be carried out between the SBDC Clients and students from selected secondary schools throughout the island.
• To allow SBDC clients an opportunity to transfer skills and knowledge to students.
• To provide SBDC clients with additional staff with a view to improving productivity levels.