MSME Operators in St. James to Benefit from Training

Operators of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSME) in Garlands, St. James and surrounding areas, are to benefit from a three-day workshop, which gets underway on January 26 at the Wexford Hotel in Montego Bay.

The Entrepreneur Skills Training workshop is being organised by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security is collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO).

It is the second of a two part series of training workshops in the parish, aimed at bringing more small and micro entrepreneurs into the formal economy and stimulating growth in the sector.

The first three-day workshop was held in November 2014, and involved some 20 MSME entrepreneurs from Granville and its environs.

Regional Director in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security’s Montego Bay office, Angella Morris, told JIS News that the workshops seek to “establish foundations to successfully promote, facilitate and support job creation, and at the same time, reduce informality.”

She said the initiative falls in line with the Government’s Human Capital Development policy, and there are plans for it to be replicated in other urban and rural communities across the island.
Specialist, Sustainable Enterprise Development and Job Creation at the ILO Office for the Caribbean, Kelvin Sergeant, also told JIS News that the first three-day workshop was essentially geared towards teaching participants how to transition their business ideas into business plans and what is required to operate a business in Jamaica.

“What we are doing is teaching people all about business…. we are teaching them for example, how to do a marketing plan… how to do financials, but more than that, we are teaching them about legal aspects of business; all the regulatory (and) insurance aspects of business, not only internationally but what is relevant for Jamaica as well,” he said.

Trainers from the Labour Ministry will coach participants on areas such as: understanding employer and employee responsibilities; rights and benefits from the National Insurance Scheme (NIS); and responsibilities of employers in relation to employment, hours of work, sick leave, formulating employment contacts, and severance packages.

Mr. Sergeant said the workshop sessions will involve discussions, lectures, and case studies.