Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo on Monday urged young people to begin assessing avenues for economic and social advancement offered by the People’s Progressive Party Civic government.
During an interview on HJ’s 94.1 Boom FM, Dr Jagdeo said that young people should consider looking at the opportunities being provided by the government, including through co-investing mechanisms.
Already, the government has co-invested in an agro-processing facility with UMAMI in Black Bush Polder. Also on the cards through this program is the construction of a cassava mill facility in Region Three.
These opportunities abound, the vice president said, and all it takes is a careful look at the yearly budgets.
“If you want to know how to plan as a young businessman, you have to…take the budget every year. The estimates would have every project that we are funding for the year in that. So…if I am an IT specialist, I see ten IT projects here, how am I going to get ready?” he explained.
On the infrastructure side, the vice president pointed out that young people can also think ahead to determine how they can benefit from spending on community-based projects that will occur in the future.
“If I look at the road budget. Next year, you’re going to see a lot of work on concrete drains…so I’m thinking ‘how can I build two moulds now? Should I get the specs now from public works to start building two moulds?’ You got to start getting involved in that sort of thing,” he said.
To continue to provide opportunities for young people, Dr Jagdeo reaffirmed his party’s commitment to developing a zero-rated small business development bank.
This bank will offer loans to young entrepreneurs without the need for repayment of any interest on the loan. He said that while other political parties are preaching victimisation and discrimination, his party preaches unity and opportunity.
“We are not saying people are victims. We are saying we will support you to fulfil your dream in this country as a young person…we are going to push you to study, to get a skill, [and] whatever it costs, we are going to pay for that,” the vice president explained.
