INSPIRING young people across Guyana from ages 10 to 17, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) in partnership with the Ministries of Education and Tourism, Industry and Commerce, and the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI), hosted its inaugural Youth Entrepreneurship Conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Liliendaal.
The Youth Entrepreneur Conference was announced a week ago by the GCCI, with the aim of inspiring Guyanese youths to become entrepreneurs as Guyana continues its rapid expansion across all sectors.
Free of charge, the conference was held under the theme, ‘Igniting Guyana’s Next Generation of Entrepreneurs,’ and saw 265 students from 86 schools in attendance.
The youths were engaged in interactive break-out sessions targetting different interests such as artificial intelligence and tech, marketing and public relations, agro-processing, and exploring the orange economy and tourism and hospitality sector. These areas were selected deliberately as Guyana continues to grow in each sector/ industry.
Delivering the feature address, Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Susan Rodrigues told attendees and participants that this conference is a result of public-private partnerships, between the government and the private sector.
She related that it is important that the government creates the right environments for businesses to thrive, and ensuring that there is an equipped private sector that can take advantage of those opportunities, form businesses, create new ideas and generate employment for the people of our nation.
Mentioning that more than ever before we understand that entrepreneurship is a profession that should be taught in schools, and instilled from an early age as a career option along with the other traditional roles, Minister Rodrigues asserted that while working in the public sector is noble, entrepreneurship is exciting, and is equally challenging.
“A lot of times we’re told we have to follow our passion, and following passion is good, but you also have to be able to problem solve, and every speaker who spoke before me spoke about problem-solving, and that’s essentially what entrepreneurship is about. Identifying where there’s a gap, identifying where there’s a problem, and then coming up with a solution for that problem,” she remarked.
The minister related that there are more initiatives such as this one that will help our young people to think beyond what they deem is possible.
According to Minister Rodrigues, with all of the revenue earned, the Government of Guyana is ensuring that it is making public-sector investments, investing in our people, and providing and creating environments for businesses to thrive.
“That is why we’re investing so much in training. We’ve achieved universal primary education. We’re trying to achieve universal secondary education. We’re equipping the schools with smart classrooms so that you’re given more exposure and leverage to learn in different ways,” she said, “Providing a modern health care service for you to live long, healthy lives and be productive. Connecting our country to the upgrading of infrastructure, and then ensuring that Guyana is a place where people want to stay and work and earn and invest to create a bright future for all of us here.”
She told students that the Guyana being built by the government is one where there are endless opportunities, where every boy and girl feels they are safe and can achieve their dreams.
Minister Rodrigues, in encouraging students, stated that in that room there are ideas that can propel Guyana, in terms of innovation and technology.
“Exposure is what you need; you need the right equipment to be able to express yourself. You need safe spaces in schools where you’re free from bullyism and free from pressure of different expectations, where you can be yourself, and where you’re free to express yourselves and express your ideas and not be judged,” she said.