Forum helps small entrepreneurs gain business ideas

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Forum helps small entrepreneurs gain business ideas

02-August-2016


Small entrepreneurs had the opportunity to gain much needed business ideas yesterday through a forum organised by the Small Enterprise Promotion Agency (Senpa) as part of activities to commemorate its 12th anniversary.
Present during the forum were Investment, Entrepreneurship Development and Business Innovation (MEDBI) Minister Michael Benstrong, Member of National Assembly (MNA) Sylvianne Valmont, chief executive of Senpa Penny Belmont, small business entrepreneurs and Senpa officers.
The meeting took place at the Independence House Annex.
The four presenters at the forum included consultant Daniella Larue who talked about ethics in business – keeping a positive attitude, while accountant Jean Marie Moutia based his presentation on the importance of maintaining a good account and recording one’s business.
Oliver Bastienne, chairperson of the Youth Entrepreneurship Board, talked about business environment, access to funding and education while the former chairman of the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Marco Francis, did a presentation on marketing.
In his opening remarks Minister Benstrong said this forum has arrived at an opportune time to talk about how business ideas can be made into a reality.
“I am very pleased with the subjects chosen, as it falls perfectly under the ministry’s strategy for the development of small and medium businesses (SMEs) and one of the most important part is improve the training of entrepreneurs focusing on the incubation period,” he said.
Ms Belmont said this forum was held to focus on the challenges they face and solutions Senpa can come up with.
“Senpa is trying to give solutions to entrepreneurs and not only how to start a business but trying to unblock the roadblocks. Therefore this forum is trying to change the mindset of people as we know starting a business is very easy but staying in business is very difficult, so once a person goes into business they have to do it properly and in the right way,” she said.
Mrs Larue said ethics is a person’s way of reasoning to make a decision and to ensure that you make the right decision that will benefit you and others as well.
“We go into business to make money and it is not wrong to do that; however, it must not only bring benefits to you but also the society, consumers, stakeholders and suppliers. This is because you cannot and it is not right to enter in business and think only about yourself,” she said.
Mrs Larue reminded that good ethics means a good reputation and that one must treat others the way they would like to be treated.
Mr Moutia said keeping business records is an important responsibility that an entrepreneur has for him or herself, the authorities, suppliers and buyers.
He said that without record keeping whether you are a sole trader, in a partnership or a company you will not know where you stand and where you are going.
He also stated that not maintaining a good account is a major reason for business failure.
“It’s not solely about fulfilling regulations; it has to matter to you to know where you are going, have details of what is happening in the business, be able to plan for the future, and also comply to legal and tax requirements,” he explained while giving reasons for keeping good business records.
When referring to the business environment, Mr Bastienne said the jurisdiction of the entrepreneurship landscape is rather challenging in Seychelles.
“In terms of ease of doing business it is still difficult, there are still a lot of stumbling blocks for example accessing land; however we must also recognise there are measures that government has implemented and is working to face the challenges,” he said.
He said in terms of access to funding under the SME scheme they want to find new ways to make it more effective to help entrepreneurs who are struggling to move forward.
“For education our challenge is that we need more curricula which infuse entrepreneurs skills, for example, competitions, how to make business plans, more talks by business leaders or courses that stimulate innovative skills. This is important as we cannot teach entrepreneurship but we can teach them the skills they need,” he said.
Mr Francis said being an entrepreneur means selling the product or service at hand and to do so the person must sell themselves first.
“As an entrepreneur you need to market yourself first, your buyer will be attracted by you before being attracted by your product or service,” he said.
He also said that the second most important fact in marketing as an entrepreneur is believing in the product and service you offer.
“There needs to be a chemistry, and if you do not believe in the product the negative aura will be transferred to the client and they will question you and your product,” he said.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=250437

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National trade facilitation workshop for private sector in Seychelles

National trade facilitation workshop for private sector in Seychelles

09-August-2016
A two-day workshop is being held this week to help businesses understand the terms, potential benefits and practical use of the technical measures of the new World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA).
It will also equip them to successfully contribute to the design, implementation and monitoring of the TFA.
The WTO TFA is an important tool for economies to improve their business environment. It is fundamental to increasing the competitiveness of the economy and attracting investment.
The training will involve the participation of the private sector and aims at identifying the measures in the TFA that help resolve cross border inefficiencies, knowledge on strategies and measures stipulated in the TFA for Seychelles, and determine how to become part of the regulatory and implementation process of the TFA.
The workshop will take place today and tomorrow at the Eden Bleu.
Concluded by WTO members in December 2013, the TFA promises greater trade efficiency by targeting administrative barriers to trade which are some of the issues that delay the movement of goods and services and increase trade costs, which are often passed to consumers.
These costs affect small and medium enterprises the most as they often lack the means and capacity to comply with complex rules.
The high compliance costs with customs and border procedures and other non-tariff measures (NTMs) represent significant charges relative to their smaller volumes of trade. This makes them uncompetitive as suppliers and hampers their integration into regional and international value chains.
For businesses, especially for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), operationalising the TFA is a path to internationalisation, which will allow them to access international value chains at lower cost and at greater speeds.
And SMEs can most benefit from the agreement by having a sound understanding of how the new procedures and requirements will complement their business priorities.
Like other WTO agreements, the degree to which the intended benefits of the TFA can be actually realised will depend on how it is implemented in national law and practice. While implementation is the primary responsibility of the WTO members, businesses play a critical role in the consultative process to advise authorities as to how the agreement is best applied in the national environment.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=250549

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AYES urges aspiring young entrepreneurs not to be scared of doing business

11-August-2016


The Association of Young Entrepreneurs Seychelles (AYES) is calling on all young people who are aspiring to do business or who has a talent that can be turned into a business, not to be scared to take that leap.
They are also being urged to join the association where they will get the help needed to get started.
And as a boost in achieving such goal, AYES is setting up a business centre at Providence as part of its future plans, which will be a one-stop shop for all young business entrepreneurs.
This was revealed by IouanaPillay, chairperson of AYES, during a recent News Extra programme on SBC TV. She was talking on what the association is all about, the progress it has made until now and its plan for the future.
Ms Pillay urged young people who has the wish to start a business, has the passion for it, to come forward.
Regarding the planned business centre, she said it will be one for the young entrepreneurs.
“Any young person can come in for information or conduct a meeting with their client if they already are in business, in case they do not have a proper place to meet. The centre will also be a place where meetings and conferences for young entrepreneurs will be held. It will be a business centre for the young people,” she said.
How was AYES conceived?
Ms Pillay explained that in March last year, the Seychelles National Youth Council (SNYC) held a symposium with a group of young entrepreneurs where key people in the business community, from the Ministry of Investment, Entrepreneurship Development and Business Innovation and other key stakeholders attended.
During the meeting the youths brought forward various constraints they were encountering in doing business, from when you start a business, looking for a location and the financial aspect of it. Then the SNYC saw the need to form that association.
“We formed the association to be the voice of the young entrepreneurs; to speak for them, to create this eco-system (if I can put it that way) to ease doing business in Seychelles,” said Ms Pillay.
Regarding support towards the young entrepreneurs in the association, Ms Pillay said there are young people who come to talk to them on constraints they are encountering in their business and on issues like policies on how to function in a business environment.
“We listen to them and we try to seek government assistance, how we can adjust some of those policies to create a more effective business environment where we can all work together. There are also young people who come with their business plan. We guide them on it like advising them if it is a good idea, where he/she should go for assistance,” said Ms Pillay.
Though the association is not fully established, she said it is on its way to achieving that.
“We are also there to paint another picture of entrepreneurship in the young entrepreneurs’ mind. This is because too many young people are talking of getting into employment when they leave school and not many of them thinking about getting into a business,” she said.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=250580

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