Business Labs Workshop focussing on Agribusiness Enterprises
News
August 27, 2013

Business Labs Workshop focussing on Agribusiness Enterprises

Minister of Agriculture, Industry, Forestry, Fisheries, and Rural Transformation Saboto Caesar yesterday officially opened a one-week Business Labs Workshop focussing on Agribusiness Enterprises.{{more}}

The August 26 to 30 Business Labs workshop, which is being held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs conference room, is sponsored by the Young Americas Business Trust (YABT) and Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation (MASHAV), in collaboration with the Centre for Enterprise Development Inc (CED), which is a branch of the Ministry of Agriculture.

The workshop is providing 25 trainers and young entrepreneurs with guidance and support to generate viable and creative ideas to assure new agribusiness enterprises. The Business Lab will stimulate innovation and generate entrepreneurial initiatives that positively affect the society and their community.

The Business Labs is being facilitated by an Israeli team comprising David Slyper, who is a founder and former CEO of Business Development Centers (MATI) and Technology Incubators and Innovator of SME supporting tools in Israel and other developing countries; and Rina Yaffe, an expert in developing training programs using experiential learning methods and a facilitator of innovative workshops on entrepreneurship and on the implementation of SME supporting tools and networks in developing countries. YABT Caribbean coordinator Akarda Ventour will also be in attendance.

This workshop provides trainers and young entrepreneurs with guidance for the development of agribusiness enterprises that can later continue receiving support through the second edition of the Caribbean Innovation Challenge (CIC), which will be launched later this year.

The CIC is part of the Entrepreneurship Component of the UNDP project Youth Innovation (Youth-IN): A Caribbean Network for Youth Development, which responds to the needs of youth identified in the report of the CARICOM Youth Commission (2010): ‘Eye on the Future: Investing in YOUTH NOW for Tomorrow’s Community. As part of the process of the Caribbean Innovation Challenge (CIC), the Business Labs help young entrepreneurs in the region to formulate their business proposals.

Yesterday’s opening ceremony was also addressed by CED’s general manager Felix Lewis.