ESA hosts debate on entrepreneurship |20 August 2019
The panellists
When you think about it, the world is crammed with great products that we take for granted, but that were once non-existent until they were somehow dreamed up by a budding entrepreneur.
From the postage stamp to the jet engine, and the cheeseburger to the microchip, radical inventions by brilliant minds have changed the way we live our lives and shape our futures.
In recognition of these people, you can now celebrate Entrepreneurship Day.
To mark this day the Entrepreneur Seychelles Agency (ESA) organised a debate at the Site auditorium yesterday morning in the presence of aspiring business owners and government officials.
“This debate is the first one that the ESA organises. We are doing this to promote entrepreneurs and give them the chance to address any issues that they may have,” said Angelic Appoo, chief executive of ESA.
Ms Appoo noted that the debate yielded many recommendations that ESA will try to move forward with, one of which includes a one-stop shop where multiple services can be offered to first-time businesses and the improvement of the seed capital grant that aims to provide fund to start-up businesses to assist them in their early stages of development.
The debate was headlined by a panel made up of Angelique Antat, the principal secretary for industry and entrepreneurship; businessmen Mervin Cedras, Bernard Port-Louis and Claude Bonte.
Ms Antat gave the bureaucratic point of view while the other businessmen talked about their own experience as business owners.
The theme of the discussion was ‘Entrepreneurial Culture’ which focuses on the state of being an entrepreneur in Seychelles.
The panel discussed a slew of topics from capital/funding to location of a business, the use of technology and legalities of starting your own business.
“We face many issues, one of which being lack of information and lack of understanding between the different government organisations that are supposed to assist entrepreneurs,” said Mervin Cedras, owner of Otantik de Zil, a small artisanal shop on La Digue.
He also added that La Digue is a hub for young entrepreneurs but the government is not offering enough assistance for these businesses to flourish.
The activities to celebrate entrepreneurs will continue throughout the week. Whether you know an entrepreneur and want to celebrate their accomplishments or admire an industry leader for their work help spread the word about National Entrepreneur Day and why it’s a day we all can celebrate.