JSIF to provide grants to entrepreneurs

The Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) will be providing grants of up to $400,000 to entrepreneurs in six communities in the parishes of St. James, Clarendon, Kingston and St. Andrew.

Eligible entrepreneurs must be from the communities of Salt Spring and Anchovy in St. James; Treadlight in Clarendon; and August Town, Greenwich Town and Denham Town, in Kingston and St. Andrew.

The grant is made possible through JSIF’s Enterprise Development Grant Initiative, a component of the second phase of the Integrated Community Development Project (ICDP), being funded by the Government of Jamaica.

Project Officer at JSIF, Dane McLean, told JIS News that the grant is to facilitate the expansion of businesses, including the purchasing of equipment.

“The enterprise or business must be based within the community and be operational for at least two years prior to applying for the grant,” Mr. McLean said.

He also indicated that entrepreneurs will benefit from training to enhance their skills.

“An objective of the grant is that we want to support sustained employment in the community and at the next stage, to reach the point where each of these enterprises could employ at least one additional person from that community,” he added.

The deadline to apply for the grant is Friday, September 11. Additional details, including application requirements and forms, are available on the JSIF’s website at www.jsif.org.