Youth encouraged to build on entrepreneurial skills

Although every teen passing through the Experience Enterprise summer camp may not become an entrepreneur, they can still build on the skills and knowledge gained over the last few weeks, to help them thrive, as they prepare for the workforce.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth and Community Empowerment, Yolande Howard pointed out the above, as she delivered remarks yesterday morning during the closing ceremony for Experience Enterprise 2019, at Queen’s College in Husbands, St. James.

“One of the problems that we have very often in Barbados, is that we have persons who come into the workforce and they don’t have the life skills, those core skills. They cannot communicate well, they cannot deal with conflict, they cannot work in teams, sometimes management of time is poor. They are irresponsible, and it’s because sometimes we don’t spend enough time conveying those kinds of skills to them,” the Permanent Secretary remarked.

“In all the rush of finishing curricula during primary and secondary school, sometimes there is no time to do that, unfortunately. In all of our programmes at the Ministry of Youth and Community Empowerment, we seek to impart those skills. So participants, you have a chance to learn some things which I hope you will take from this programme, because I don’t believe that all of you will want to own a business, but all of you can still be entrepreneurial,” she added.

“All of these qualities you will take with you when you go back to school, when you continue in your education, if you a start a business, if you work for someone else. All of these qualities are important and even if you don’t own a business, you have to own and manage yourself and still try to continue to hone these qualities, that can make you be the best that you can be,” Howard told the teenagers, who were all required to present business plans for their group, and report on their progress as entrepreneurs, over the last five weeks. (RSM)