Paulwell Launches Business Information Centre Project

Minister of Industry, Technology, Energy and Commerce, Phillip Paulwell, yesterday (July 26) launched the Jamaica Business Information Centre Project, which will provide technical expertise and business support for micro, small and medium-sized clients.
The $19 million project will involve the setting up of information centres across the island, with the main hub located at the Camp Road headquarters of the Jamaica Business Development Centre (JBDC).
Minister Paulwell, who opened the facility at the JBDC, said that the creation of the centres was an excellent idea. “It is tremendous as it is going to provide a full range of what we call e-services. You should be able to learn about establishing your businesses, and a whole lot of related matters,” he noted.
He added that the centres would play a “crucial role not only in providing vital information to existing and potential start-ups”, but also in “enhancing the management skills, know-how and productivity of small and medium enterprises”.
In her remarks, Chief Executive Officer of the JBDC, Valerie Veira, said the centres would have several functions that would be useful to the business community.
“We are going to have the dissemination of information on issues such as taxes, registration of businesses, and any other regulatory information that is required, as we believe that even if you are a one man operation, you need to operate as a business,” she said.
According to Miss Veira, the centres would forge linkages with relevant agencies such as the Trade Board, the Scientific Research Council, and the Bureau of Standards Jamaica and facilitate research on the marketplace.
“We do a lot of training here at the JBDC as we are constantly upgrading our clients and our partners, and all of the training information that we have at JBDC will be available through the centres”, she said further.
The main objective of the Jamaica Business Information Centres is to offer business development guidance to entrepreneurs, in terms of providing them with the correct and appropriate information, advice and support they need to build their businesses. The centres will also offer e-business services including e- business information, e-commerce and e-marketing.
Executive Director of the JBDC, Harold Davis told JIS News in a recent interview, that the facilities would be offering e-training in specific business areas and self-assessment tools to guide persons wishing to start businesses.
“The centres are going to be IT (Information Technology) driven because we recognize that IT is one of those tools, that will afford us tremendous leaps forward in a short space of time for business development and growth,” he stated.
The Jamaica Business Information Centre Project is a collaborative arrangement involving various public and private institutions.