P a m e l a

When I realised that many small businesses and people have lost their livelihood in recent months, I decided to provide a free e-commerce entrepreneurial course. I knew the way to survive is to go digital, as online businesses will grow even bigger.

Plus, the six-month course will bring new skills to the unemployed. They can set up their own online businesses and earn a new source of income.

I conduct the digital course (worth $3,250, at http://bit. ly/2tSL0Nb) with three other instructors under Cambridge Institute of Communication Arts, which I founded in 2017. This is my area of expertise: I have a Masters in Information Technology, and Masters in Business Administration.

To join, the students must agree to use their newly acquired skills to launch their online business within three weeks. So far, we’ve trained 300 people, out of which 15 students are sponsored. They include chefs and women who have become sole breadwinners after their husbands lost their jobs.

The first three weeks of the course will see students and instructors brainstorm all kinds of ideas, before we create the products and build a system around each business. I encourage my students to think big and out of the box! Of course, the business has to be viable and creative, too! Some ideas include digital wet markets, homebased food businesses, and offering financial advice to help others get through tough times. Each week, we’ll guide each student one-on-one through the remaining months. I also oversee their initial months of operations. What motivates me is teaching people how to kick-start their businesses and bounce back!

I’m happy to see the students grow... helping them rethink problems, provide new solutions and be adaptable. One day, I’ll look back and marvel at all the ideas we thought up during these times.