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05th
January 2010
Getting
today’s youth ready for tomorrow
 A
major initiative will be undertaken later this
week by a popular local businessman that has
the potential to change the way we do business
in St. Lucia in five or ten years time. It’s
the launching of a program aimed at identifying
and supporting local projects by young people
– projects that are innovative, creative
and self-sustaining.
Called the Discovering Entrepreneurs -- Generation
Next (Gen X) project, it aims at giving a start
in life to young persons in or out of school.
I’m sure Rayneau Gajadhar, the man behind
the idea, will sufficiently explain on Thursday
what the project is all about. But from what’s
been written and said to date, it’s worth
saying that it’s a project that needs
to be supported.
Let me say up front that I know a lot about
the project because I’m involved in it
-- which is why I can say, with authority, that
the $50,000.00 invested by Mr Gajadhar in this
project is a wise investment.
It’s not all local entrepreneurs who would
invest that amount in this type of project at
this time in the economic life of the country,
the region and the world. But then, Rayneau
Gajadhar has never been like your average local
businessman. Not yet 50, he’s built a
multi-million-dollar construction group that
has grown over the past 18 years to become the
largest locally-owned construction company on
the island.
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In 2008, Mr Gajadhar’s
company imported the largest ever single shipment
of equipment from China to strengthen his
group’s operations in the construction
and mining sectors. In 2009, he also launched
the innovative Stimulus Package project that
saw the cost of building materials reduced
considerably island-wide over the 6-month
period the program lasted. He’s starting
2010 with the Gen X program and says it will
be an annual affair.
An important aspect of this project is that
it aims to empower young people by changing
their mindset from expecting jobs to be created
for them after leaving school to preparing
to start their own.
This is not the only project aimed at making
business people out of young persons. The
Office of Private Sector Relations (OPSR),
the Small Enterprise Development Unit (SEDU),
the James Belgrave Micro-Enterprise Development
Fund (Belfund) and the National Research and
Development Foundation (NRDF) all have projects
with more or less the same aim in mind. The
difference with Gen X, however, is that it
is private sector driven, national in scope,
not for profit and intended to be annual.
As with all other similar projects, the first
steps are like creeping before walking, But
from what’s been said and done so far,
it can only be and do good for those who participate
– which is why it should be supported
by all who really care about getting today’s
youth ready for tomorrow. (end)
Discuss
Story
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