Think big, stay passionate, stay dedicated

Participants of Set Up For Success, a two-week training course conducted by the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme (YES), as part of the Building Blocks Project, were urged to “think big, stay passionate and stay dedicated”.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment, Dwight Sutherland, gave these words of encouragement as he delivered remarks yesterday, at their graduation ceremony, held in the Ministry’s Training Room, at Sky Mall, Haggatt Hall, St Michael.

Quoting Nelson Mandela, Minister Sutherland told the participants that “a winner is a dreamer who never gives up”, and “everyone can rise above their circumstances”, as he appealed to them not to “let the training go for naught, and to become positive influencers in their communities”.

The Community Empowerment Minister challenged the graduates to “see the training as a turning point on the road to becoming entrepreneurs, and to utilise the tools, techniques and information from the training course to become successful entrepreneurs, whose success could go beyond the shores of Barbados”.

He pointed out that the Building Blocks Project was one of Government’s initiatives to assist in building out and empowering youth within communities, because youth development is national development.

Also speaking during the graduation ceremony was Youth Enterprise Officer, Claire Inniss, who congratulated the participants for completing the course.   She explained that it consisted of “a number of workshops, which were a marriage of both personal development and business subjects”.

Inniss pointed out that during the training “lots of information was shared; much learning took place; friendships were forged; networking was done; ideas were enhanced and refined; and plans had been reviewed and concretised”.

She told the participants that YES officers are very passionate about Barbadian youth, and assisting them with reaching their goals.  She added that YES would continue to maintain the relationship created, while offering a number of courses to help sustain their new business ventures, because “your success is our success”.

All 17 participants, comprising eight females and nine males, successfully completed the Set Up For Success training course.  Two of them, Anansa St. Juste and Randy Went, shared how they plan to implement the lessons learned into their small business ventures, and how they would use the information to empower other youth within their communities. (SFC/BGIS)