Global Entrepreneurship Week: |24 November 2020
Highlight of the day at Penlac (Photos: Joena Meme)
Penlac invited to expose its manufacturing operations to the youth
Last week, Penlac Company Limited welcomed two secondary students to take part in a one-of-a-kind activity hosted by Gafoor Yakub, chairman & managing director of Penlac.
This activity was conducted as part of the 2020 edition of the Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) hosted by Seychelles through the department of Entrepreneurship and Industry (DEI).
The GEW event wrapped up with a lively youth debate on how to enable the entrepreneurial ecosystem that was held at The Guy Morel Institute on Sunday November 22.
Penlac Co. Ltd is an exemplary local manufacturing and retailing industry which is being run 100% by Seychellois and it offers a range of superior quality paints and varnishes for the domestic market.
The GEW activity at the Penlac factory was held as part of a series of activities under the banner ‘Students run a business for a day’ in which secondary students are exposed to all aspects of a business.
The students – Gareth Albert and Haani Kilindo from Plaisance and Mont Fleuri secondary school – arrived at the Penlac’s factory, situated at Le Rocher at 8am where they met the production manager, Jose Thomas. From there, they learned about Mr Thomas’ duties and responsibilities as production manager.
The activity started off with a tour of the factory and thereafter, the students participated in a practical on-the-job observation and explanation of the paint manufacturing process.
The students were also shown the full range of products produced by Penlac and their respective processes. As the activity progressed, a briefing was conducted to inform the students about the different quality controls and health and safety practices are applied by Penlac in its day to day operations. They ended their activity with an oversight of the different eco-friendly and environmental protection initiatives being taken by the company. The students were very impressed with their practical experiences for the day.
Mr Yakub said he is very pleased to participate in the GEW especially when the economic situation is changing and requires a different approach or mindset. He says, “To stay afloat, I think entrepreneurs have to be bold and adapt their business plans, develop a strong online presence where appropriate and join the right network of like-minded entrepreneurs in producing local, high quality value-added products. This Covid-19 pandemic has impacted on a lot of businesses and it has disrupted supply chains for “inputs” and other essentials. But we should draw lessons from this economic disruption and make the most of the entrepreneurial opportunities that it creates as we move forward.”
There were other equally interesting events and activities held to commemorate the GEW 2020 in Seychelles between November 16 and 22 such as the running of a Boat Charter at Angel Fish Marina and visits to Mavericks, a new IT company, and to WonderWeiss, ending with a grand youth debate on how to enable the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The GEW is the heartbeat of the Global Entrepreneurship Network – a week-long celebration of the innovators and job creators, who launch start-ups that bring ideas to life, drive economic growth and expand human welfare. It is organised every November in order to inspire people everywhere through local, national and global activities, from large large-scale competitions and events to intimate networking gatherings.
You can visit the official GEW Seychelles website – genglobal.org/Seychelles, the department’s Facebook and Instagram pages to keep up with GEW events. Updates may also be accessed by using the hashtags #GEW2020 #GEWSeychelles.
Contributed by the department of Entrepreneurship and Industry
