ACDA and YIPOG in pursuit of youth empowerment
Some of the participants posing in this ACDA photo
Some of the participants posing in this ACDA photo

AWAKE – Awareness With Action and Knowledge for Empowerment was the theme of the recently held African Cultural Development Association (ACDA) and Youth Innovation Project of Guyana (YIPOG) workshops and mentoring sessions at the ACDA headquarters in Thomas Lands.

The YIPOG is a government-funded project and ACDA, being a beneficiary of that project, was able to use those funds to facilitate the entire youth empowerment programme – the workshops and the Ujamaa Challenge and also provide help for some entrepreneurs with their businesses.

Devon Jacobs & Rochelle Dey- First Place (Prestige Trading. Product: Emery’s Honey Roasted Nuts)

The ACDA told the Pepperpot Magazine that this youth empowerment project was aimed at equipping youth with the essential knowledge and skills needed to significantly improve their chances of gaining employment. In addition, the project was selected due to the high unemployment rate observed in the society today, especially in Afro-Guyanese communities.

MENTORING
It was opened to youth between the ages of 16 – 35 years and the goal of ACDA for this project was to help Afro-Guyanese youth to: develop the existing talents and skills, which are necessary for employment; align the youth with experienced mentors or institutions for career development; and present relevant knowledge to increase their chances of gaining employment.

The association reported that the project, which was successfully launched in late November 2017, entailed a series of interactive sessions between mentors and the participants to enhance their skills in areas such as: Curriculum Vitae (CV) writing (which is a brief account of a person’s education, qualification and previous occupations that is usually sent with a job application), professional ethics, tips on looking for jobs and interview preparations.

WORKING WITH THE PARTICIPANTS

Orin Hickerson (Pure and Fresh Smoothie Bar ProductHealthy Vegan Smoothies & Food bar) tied for Second place with (ACDA 4) Ataliyah Yisreal (Outlier’s Zone Service: Women’s Legacy Building Master Class)

As part of the interview preparation, participants were taken through a process of ‘mock interviews’, where facilitators helped them to acquire first-hand experiences on what real interviews may be like. Most of the young people who did the programme had never gone through a real interview and therefore much emphasis was placed on fine-tuning their written and verbal communication, as well as confidence skills, the ACDA representative said.

According to ACDA, each of the participants was paired with qualified mentors on a one-on-one basis, who were tasked to be in continual contact with them and to provide guidance and support over a three-month period. In the process, the participants showcased their own skills, talents and potentials, which the mentors were then able to nurture for their own benefit.

ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP WORKSHOP
Another aspect of the programme was the ACDA entrepreneurial leadership workshop, which was held in collaboration with the LYRIC Group (UK). Herronia James from the United

Michael Kellman – Third Place (Mickelly’s Snow Treats. Product name: Snow cone treats, toys and packages) (ACDA Photos)

Kingdom conducted this workshop. Though this programme which lasted for a relatively short period (two days), it was reported that there were full sessions and also full participation by all involved.

Wanting the participants to feel in tune with their culture – to have a sense of purpose, a sense of identity, James used music to bring out the different aspect of entrepreneurship. The programme was designed to develop successful youth entrepreneurs and to facilitate the emergence of dynamic young business leaders.

The sessions explored the importance of vision, influence, innovation, creativity, planning, leadership communication and branding for the start-up of businesses in the Green Economy.

There were 31 persons who participated in this workshop, and they were all equipped with the knowledge to further enhance their business ideas or their existing business, and they were all encouraged to register for the Ujamaa Challenge to pitch their ideas as well.

THE UJAMAA CHALLENGE PITCH COMPETITION
According to the ACDA, the Ujamaa Challenge was an opportunity for youths with businesses or those who wanted to start businesses to pitch their ideas – experience judges within the Afro-Guyanese community who were knowledgeable business owners and who would be able to help them with their ideas, as well as what takes place after the competition.

ACDA proudly presented the Ujamaa Challenge to Guyana, which was focused on celebrating the spirit of cooperative economics among Afro-Guyanese youths in the business community. This project was aimed at helping them to bring their business ideas to life or for their established businesses to grow and to provide opportunities for the participants to network with mentors and establish meaningful business links with other entrepreneurs.

This Challenge was also for entrepreneurs between the ages of 16 to 35 years who were either in the start-up stage of business development or had already established businesses that need guidance. For these sessions, seven persons took part in the mentoring aspect, with one-on-one discussions about what their business ideas were, or what they needed to further develop their current businesses.

‘SHARK TANK’ AND ‘DRAGON’S DEN’
This (Ujamaa) Challenge was intended to take on a ‘Shark Tank’ and ‘Dragon’s Den’ set up where the youth presented their business ideas to experienced judges for constructive critique.

This session was geared towards ensuring that the youth benefitted by way of improved public speaking skills, and receiving constructive criticism from experienced business owners.

The participants were also able to gain clarity and guidance through the mentoring of successful entrepreneurs, as well as cash and consolation prizes, which included product purchases, sponsorship of other participants to enroll in desired programmes and business contracts with ACDA Entrepreneurs.

Fourteen persons took part in the Ujamaa Challenge and while all of them were acknowledged, some were awarded various prizes for the places they gained. Devon Jacobs and Rochelle Day (Emery’s Honey Roasted Nuts) from Prestige Trading gained first place and won $300,000; Orin Hickerson (Healthy Vegan-Smoothies and Food Bar) from Pure and Fresh Smoothie Bar scored second place and won $100,000; Athalyah Yisreal (Master Class-Legacy/Generational Wealth Women) of Outlier’ Zone also came in at second place and won $100,000 as well. In third place was Michael Kellman with the Snow Treat Carts, Toys and Packages representing the Mickelly’s Snow Cone Treat business name. He also won $100,000 for his business/ideas.

The others who participated in the AWAKE-Ujamaa Challenge were fashion and design artists Mark Junor and Carl Peterkin; and in the area creative work Devon Wilson, Ruth Wilson and Quason Paul held their own in various business/ ideas. There were also organic/agriculture business ideas which included Monette Harry and Samantha Thierens; as well as in the production line with Peter Barkoye as one of the participants.

This AWAKE project has successfully reached out to over 58 youth from its three major activities and 13 mentors. On-going support is also factored into this project for a further three months for which all of the participants will benefit.

Culture is also seen as an integral part of the programme and so free training is offered in areas such as drumming, dancing (for all ages and groups), as part of a general cultural development programme. The association is also set to offer programmes in finance, mental health and also gardening.

EVALUATION
According to ACDA, built-in to the entire project is an active evaluation programme to check on the participants – not only with the CV workshop but also with the entrepreneurs to see how the programme is impacting their lives. In addition, as an off-shoot to the present programme participants are free to participate in monthly meetings, which is held by an ACDA round-table and caters specifically for businesses and working with those who may need help. (mercilinburke2017@gmail.com)

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