Entrepreneurial Workshop in Bath, St.Thomas

Residents and owners of small cottage industries in St. Thomas, began a four-day Entrepreneurial Workshop on Wednesday (October 8), at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) Parish Office in Bath, in the parish.
The workshop, organised by the Social Development Commission (SDC), is one in a series to be held across the parish, to provide entrepreneurial training for persons who might want to develop their products.
Some of the topics to be discussed include conflict resolution, entrepreneurship development, financial management and book keeping.
On the first day of the workshop, two topics, operating a small business and writing a marketing plan, were addressed by Claudia Sewell, a representative of the Parish Development Committee.
A variety of products, including various wines, clothing, crochet and seasonings prepared by the participants, in collaboration with the Home Economics Department of RADA, were also on display at the workshop.
In his address at the opening of the workshop, Regional Director at the SDC, Courtney Brown, said the organisation was supportive of income generating projects, in light of the impact of the decline in banana production in some areas.
“We are trying to work with these partners to see to what extent we can develop, within the community, a sense of entrepreneurship, that people can find their own way, can find different business ideas, different types of livelihood that can help to improve their standard of living,” he said.
He implored the participants to pay keen attention to what was being discussed at the workshop, and to come up with new business ideas that would help to improve their livelihood.
Parish Manager at the SDC’s St. Thomas office, Luther Cummings, told JIS News, that the workshop was organised out of a need to develop the many products that were always on display at expositions in the parish.
“When we looked at the level of products that are being produced, without bringing any economic benefits to the community, we at the SDC thought that we would develop a collaborative approach to take this type of production to another level, where the community could benefit,” he said.
Mr. Cummings said the SDC had met with members of community groups and decided, “that we would do some form of entrepreneurial training to build their capacity to really develop their products.”
He explained that during the workshop, participants would be exposed to small business lending institutions, such as the Jamaica Business Development Centre and the credit union. Additionally, he said participants would be asked to develop business plans to be scrutinised by lending institutions for financing, to improve their businesses.
The Parish Manager said the main problem facing young entrepreneurs in the parish is start-up capital. He said the SDC would be trying to get the necessary financing through the European Union (EU), to develop cottage industries to a level where they could create employment for residents within the communities.