‘We are here to help young Gambian entrepreneurs’ says GYCC CEO

The CEO of the Gambia Youth Chamber of Commerce (GYCC), Baboucarr Kebbeh, has offered his institution’s support to young Gambian entrepreneurs.

The two-year old chamber of commerce has plans to help 500 young people start up businesses by the end of the year. “We offer training and promote businesses of young people. Recently, we conducted a training for 100 youths at the President’s International Awards Scheme as part of our target to reach out to 100 young entrepreneurs in three months. Now the focus is to reach out to another hundred or more in the next few months, focusing on marketing, product development, branding and the use of social media as a tool to connect with customers,” he explained.

Kebbeh’s institution does not only provide training, it also provides mentorship to students as well as lobby funds and mini-grants for young people. “We are members of many mini-grant committees, our role there is to ensure that the said grants are accessible to young people, furthermore, we collaborate with partners like the Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), Start up Incubator, Global Youth Innovation Network and EMPRETEC to provide more opportunities for young people.”

“On the other hand, we provide booths free of charge for young people to sell their products and establish contact with the business community during trade fairs”, he said.
CEO Kebbeh revealed that GYCC successfully registered dozens of young people who are now thriving on their own.

“Since its establishment in 2016, sixty young people have registered their businesses with us, the registration fee is only 500 Dalasi. In addition, we helped 33 or more businesses to set up in other parts of the country, this excludes numerous schools that visit us for mentorship”, he explained.
Discouraging young people from taking the dangerous back way to Europe, Kebbeh advised them to venture into the poultry business, which he said is booming.

“The back way is not the way, I will urge them to try poultry for example, and it is very lucrative these days, now a crate of egg is sold at 150 to 200 Dalasis, so if one is able to get 500 birds, they can earn more money. Food processing too is another venture, likewise printing, eco-tourism and agribusiness,” he said.

The GYCC CEO also joined the rally calling on stranded migrants to return home and tap into the available opportunities in the country. He added that travelling to Europe through the back way is not worth it, noting that the conditions in the camps in Europe, where most migrants end up, are not good.

TMP –  25/05/2018