BIH, Botho University Drill Youth
Pauline Dikuelo | Tuesday September 7, 2021 06:00
The programme is done by the International Trade Centre's (ITC) Youth and Trade Programme in collaboration with the Botswana Innovation Hub and Botho University. The four-month programme, which began this month, will focus on digital skills and financial literacy. Activities will be led by local and international experts from the ITC, BIH and various partners.
The programme aims to support youth-led enterprises to enhance their digital skills, financial literacy, market analysis and comparative skills by linking them with mentors and taking them through various workshops to help them enhance their skills and scale their enterprises. All enterprises in this programme are legally registered and active in the market for more than a year.
According to BIH brand and communications manager Kemiso Ben, the programme’s focus on three areas is premised upon the results of a needs assessment survey the partners ran in April 2021. “The first cohort will be invited to an introductory kick of launch event to connect with the other selected enterprises, learn about the organisers and the content.
The youth entrepreneurs who participate in this programme showed a strong desire to enhance their skills in the three main focus areas: digital skills, financial literacy, and market intelligence,” she said. The programme supports youth entrepreneurs under 35 years of age from regions across the country. Due to the current public health situation, the programme will be hybrid, supporting activities online and in-person.
ITC's Youth and Trade Programme supports young people and youth-owned SMEs. The programme takes a strategic, market-led approach to building youth entrepreneurship and employability.
The pillars of the youth and trade programme help youth voices to be heard, connect and train young people, and deliver results with country-based projects and an enhanced mainstreaming approach. The strategic objective for 2021 is to equip 100,000 young people with market-relevant skills. The ITC's Youth and Trade Programme empowers young people and youth entrepreneurs to become more competitive and connected to international markets for trade and investment, thus raising incomes and creating more job opportunities.