With the Jamaican economy taking a massive hit from the COVID-19 pandemic, and around 170,000 jobs lost in the tourism, music, entertainment, sports and culture sectors alone, the importance of the work being carried out by the Jamaica Youth Business Trust (JYBT) has been brought into sharp focus.

Olayinka Jacobs-Bonnick, general manager of the JYBT, said that, in 2021, the JYBT partnered with Princes Trust International (PTI) to execute Explore Enterprise, a programme that engages young people ages 18-30 in their exploration of whether self-employment is a viable pathway.

”Explore Enterprise provides the opportunity for a segment of the population that does not typically have access to such training and business support to be given free expert guidance,” Jacobs-Bonnick said.

Fiona Burrell, a participant of Explore Enterprise Cohort 1, shared that “JYBT has provided insight on and given me the opportunity to understand different key factors when writing my business plan and also providing insight on the factors when starting your own business”.

The training, which is virtual, provides youth ages 18-30 the platform to develop their ideas during individual business training support with certified and experienced business experts.

Micro, small and mid-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are widely understood as the cornerstone of a society. Post-COVID economic recovery will be led by such companies, as they employ more than 50 per cent of the workforce and represent 99 per cent of all companies in Jamaica.

“Entrepreneurship is an attitude that speaks to an individual’s motivation and capability, independently or within the context of an organisation, as well as their ability to spot an opportunity and pursue it to create wealth or economic
success,” stated Jacobs-Bonnick.

“It is advanced thinking that leads to new ideas, new products, and new services. Better production methodologies and efficient approaches to doing things also aids in economic growth; this is what we are seeking to hone.”

Developing this attitude comes in the form of education. That is, upskilling and entrepreneurial training which will avail young people of the ability to acquire knowledge, skills, and tools as well as equip them with the power to use the
concepts developed within JYBT’s approaches to create employment for themselves and others in their community.