Three entrepreneurs selected for US fellowship

Three promising Guyanese entrepreneurs have been selected to participate in the 2018 Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Professional Fellows Programme.

The fiveweek fellowship programme which commences next month and will continue into October. It will bring together 250 young leaders from 36 countries in the Caribbean, Latin America and the United States.

It is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State.

The YLAI empowers entrepreneurs to strengthen their capacity to launch and advance their entrepreneurial ideas and effectively contribute to social and economic development in their communities.

During the fiveweek programme, the fellows will learn and share their experiences in start-ups, small businesses, non-governmental organizations, and similar entities in cities throughout the United States and in partnership with community groups and American universities. The participants will further develop their business or social venture plans through an entrepreneurship curriculum and workshops, and by working alongside their American counterparts.

The programme will begin in Detroit, Michigan. The young entrepreneurs will then engage in fourweek fellowships in cities throughout the United States and conclude with a Closing Summit in Washington, D.C.

Of the over 2,500 applicants received from the region this year, three young leaders from Guyana have been accepted. They are: Jaianan Hirai, co-founder of the A+ Computer Training Centre, located in West Coast Demerara.

It provides free and lowcost training courses for young people who cannot afford the fees of traditional IT schools. Jai is also an IT Trainer at the University of Guyana and a Certified Network Administrator. Evie Kanhai-Gurchuran, co-founder and CEO of Java Coffee Bar, an artisanal coffee shop in Georgetown. Java Coffee Bar reduces unemployment and supports Guyanese farmers by using locally sourced ingredients and by making almost all of its products from scratch. Evie is also the CEO of EMTEC, a marketing and graphic design firm, and Sites Builders, a product development company. Nigel Anthony Peters, founder of Arcadia Agri, a cultivator of organic fruits and vegetables in Guyana. By providing locally grown produce and hiring a young workforce, Arcadia Agri aims to reduce both food imports and youth unemployment in the country. Last year three young Guyanese leaders were accepted into the programme. They were Suzanne Hamilton, Founder of Sosh Solutions in Linden, which offers globally recognized professional qualification courses for local entrepreneurs and addresses the unavailability of professional and youth development opportunities in the fields of accounting, business, and finance.

Then there was Charles Hutson founded Ecab, a mobile app for calling taxis that allows cab-seekers to electronically hail the closest available cab while allowing drivers to earn more by saving on gasoline and time.

And Christine Profitt, founder of The Scrubs Hub, an organization that provides quality medical garments and personal protective gear for medical professionals across Guyana at an affordable cost. (Kaieteur News)