Some of the SIYB graduates

BY DIANE MUSHIMIYIMANA

The Business Development Fund (BDF), in partnership with the International Labor Organization (ILO) has awarded certificates to more than 94 young entrepreneurs who have completed the Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) program.

Through SIYB, the entrepreneurs were trained in, among others, business planning, marketing, record keeping and stock control. The aim is to empower small scale entrepreneurs to start and grow their businesses through sound management principles and skills, and contribute to job creation and entrepreneurship.

Speaking at the ceremony, Livingstone Nkusi , the BDF branches coordinator  said that SIYB  is a good opportunity for the Rwandan youth to have access to finance by   identifying the best business ideas  that are bankable and get BDF guarantee to enable them become successful entrepreneurs.

"Poor business projects of the young aspiring entrepreneurs are often cited as a major factor for the credit rejection and BDF can’t guarantee their feasibility.  Thanks to this training, we hope to address this issue by providing relevant skills to our youth, to enable them start and run sustainable businesses.  Doors will be open for anyone who attended these trainings to get the BDF guarantee and put what they learnt into practice. Now, we have trained 94 youth but before the end of this year we will train another group,” he said.

Nkusi also urged the trainees to exploit skills acquired into making a difference in businesses and contribute to the national development NEP –Kora Wigire , which, among others, targets at least 200,000 off- farm jobs every year.

Livingstone Nkusi , the BDF branches coordinator handing over certificate to one of the participants

ILO assists business development services organizations whereas BDF supports development of a sustainable training system based on international standards.

Jude Muzale, ILO national program coordinator said that the program  is currently the largest global business management training intervention bearing fruits in over 160 countries .  Here in Rwanda, the ILO is partnering with BDF to address the issue of youth unemployment with a focus on building the youth’s capacity to become entrepreneurs.

"The fact that the BDF has branches countrywide enables us to reach out to a big number of the  youth   and impart  the skills they need to create jobs and develop themselves  while contributing to the national economic growth, paying  taxes and employing others , he argued.

Trainees have expressed gratitude towards the gesture and committed to applying the knowledge acquired to overcome unemployment and contribute to the overall country’s development.

Patrick Ndabarishye, a university graduate in Software Engineering has been trained on GYBI-Generate Your Business Idea. He says that before attending the training he had many business ideas and confused about what to keep and what to drop. Now, he has learnt how to choose the most feasible/concrete among many business ideas.

"Now I know how to follow steps in developing business plans, entrepreneurship and market analysis among others. As soon as I leave here, I will process my business idea and come up with a good business plan which I will present for a loan or other financial support,” he says.

The SIYB program has a number of training modules suiting entrepreneurs at all stages of business. Generate Your Business Idea (GYBI) takes potential entrepreneurs through the process of generating a viable business idea.

Start Your Business (SYB) helps emerging entrepreneurs develop concrete business plans, whether they are entrepreneurs currently operating small, informal business activities or entrepreneurs who have a great idea but don’t know how to start.

Improve Your Business (IYB) introduces existing entrepreneurs to good principles of business management, including marketing, costing, stock control, record keeping, build and business planning. These skills can help transition small businesses towards growth.