The Saint Lucia Youth Business Trust (SLYBT) in its efforts to support social enterprise development in St. Lucia and in the Caribbean, officially commenced its second cohort of the Social Enterprise Incubator.
The Social Enterprise Incubator is a program designed by the Barbados Youth Business Trust to support the launch of new social enterprises in Barbados, Dominica and St. Lucia. This initiative targets young entrepreneurs between the ages of 16-30, who are at an early stage of social enterprise development and want to move ahead, through the provision of training, mentorship and financing. The immediate goal is to develop and launch successful social ventures while also building the long-term capacity of social entrepreneurs and organisations.
Through a series of virtual workshops, the Incubator programme will guide 13 participants in developing and validating a business plan for their enterprise concept. The programme will consist of an interactive learning environment, business planning tools and resources, facilitation from subject matter experts, learning from experienced social entrepreneurs, support with launch planning, one-on-one coaching and access to small development grants.
The participants will benefit from instruction in areas of Social Enterprise, Social Innovation, Financing a Social Enterprise, Social Enterprise Planning, Creating Social Change and Pitch Preparation. Social Enterprise Experts from Barbados and Trinidad will facilitate the sessions, along with Business Management Training Experts from St. Lucia.
The first phase of the Incubator programme will last approximately five months and will culminate on July 26th with the presentation of business plans to a panel of judges and invited guests. Thereafter, beneficiaries will be assisted with the start-up and launch of their various social enterprises, followed by the provision of business support, technical assistance and other business advisory services.
SLYBT believes that the most powerful force for change in the world is a new idea in the hands of the right person. We invite you to support SLYBT by sharing this story and help us find and invest in the next generation of systems-changing social entrepreneurs. With our help, they are building an “Everyone a Changemaker” world. We remain committed to supporting youth-led businesses to develop the economy and improve the quality of life of our youth population.