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Home / //Karas youth hope to boost their businesses
//Karas youth hope to boost their businesses
2016-10-31Staff Report 2 Keetmanshoop Youth with small businesses in the //Karas Region say they will be able to run their businesses more successfully and make a profit after a one-week training course in business management. The training, which ended on Friday, covered basic topics such as developing a business plan, cost pricing, and bookkeeping and is aimed at equipping the youth with basic business skills that will enable them to run their companies efficiently and profitably. The training facilitator, Else Elene Davids, said she is impressed with the business potential in the youth in the region, saying most participants had brilliant business ideas that can flourish with the necessary guidance: “I think there is a huge potential in these young people, if they put a good effort in and it’s a great pleasure to see that the youth want to do something for themselves.” She described the training – which was offered courtesy of the National Youth Council – as fruitful, indicating that the knowledge gained by the trainees will help them expand their businesses and employ more people. On top of the training, the about 30 participants are to receive a financial boost from NYC, with a loan amount ranging from N$1 000 to N$5 000, to be given to each participant to invest in their business, an amount repayable in six months. The loan is part of the Credit for Youth in Business scheme, which is aimed at rendering support to youth involved in business, but who cannot access bank loans, to encourage them to expand their businesses, increase productivity, profits, and create employment. The participants described the session as enlightening, stating that most of them had started their businesses without the necessary knowledge or skills of how to run a business and the training has proven to be challenging and thus the skills acquired during the training will be very helpful, while the loans will certainly help them grow their businesses. One of the trainees, Andre Bezuidenhoudt, who runs a catering business said he is happy that youth in business can get such training and financial support, as it will help them expand. He said many people go into business not knowing what they are doing and thus many businesses end up failing as a result. “We don’t even do market research. We just wake up and we want to do business, so this training is important and I can now expand my business and employ more people,” he said. Christina April is another participant, who could not be more thankful for receiving what she called eye-opening business training. She said most of the youth have run their businesses the wrong way and the training will help improve how they manage their businesses. “Some of us have businesses, but they are not successful and not growing, but I think this will change after this training,” she stated. The five-day training course was hosted at the Keetmanshoop Multi-Purpose Centre last week. 2016-10-31Staff Report 2
