COMFWB Seychelles and MIEI ramp up data gathering for potential projects’ initiations |08 November 2021

Minister Vidot and Mrs Albert

The Comesa Federation of Women in Business (COMFWB) Seychelles and the Ministry of Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry (MIEI) are actively engaged in creating an accessible channel for comments, suggestions

and complaints from the business community so as to better assess and address their relevant needs.

Part of the exercise is also to gather relevant data of businessmen, women and young people who want to venture into business but who perhaps don’t know where to start or what type of business to consider.

The activity ties in well with the ministry’s wider aim of facilitating the business environment by making sure challenges being experienced by entrepreneurs and investors are understood, remedied or tackled appropriately through either revised or new policies, or improved processes and procedures.

The Minister for Investment, Entrepreneurship & Industry, Devika Vidot, and the chairperson of COMFWB Seychelles, Claudette Albert, discussed particulars of COMFWB’s activities since it was launched in August this year, including new

collaborative avenues, during a meeting held at the minister’s headquarters in Victoria last week.

To date, COMFWB Seychelles has been offering one on one mentoring to women and young people who are keen to venture into new business opportunities, delivering specialised training across marketing, business promotions, business

planning, sharing of technical knowledge, offering hands on expertise and know-how, which will equip men, women and young people in their business creation and management. Further training is planned before the end of this year.

Requests for collaboration and knowledge transfer from the African region is on a high, and a number of projects are in the pipeline through Comesa and other relevant international bodies for the next two years. Projects through which

Seychelles’ women and the youth stand to benefit immensely.

COMFWB Seychelles’ collection of information is being closely guided by the Central Bank of Seychelles.

The activity will help identify relevant trends and skills gaps in the country, enabling appropriate training to be delivered by experts in key areas like agriculture, handicraft and fisheries, hence creating value added products, across new value chains.

Innovation and tech transfers are also pre-requisites of training. All efforts are aimed at creating local jobs and generating revenue. Key to note that COMFWB’s objectives tie in well with MIEI’s vision, ‘Generation of wealth and creation of employment responsibly in a conducive business environment’.

Most data gathering from business hopefuls is being done at the dedicated COMFWB Seychelles desk on the 2nd floor of SIB (Seychelles Investment Bureau) and anyone who would either like to; participate in this fact finding exercise, obtain more information on the work of the Federation, gain guidance on their chosen business field or register with COMFWB Seychelles, is being invited to

contact the Federation directly.

COMFWB Seychelles’ representatives will also be present at the open day being held by Esa (Enterprise Seychelles Agency) today at the Camion Hall, as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Contributed