15 youths to benefit from small-medium enterprises initiative

FIFTEEN youngsters in Lae will venture into small-medium enterprise (SME) following a memorandum of understanding signed between the Save the Children in PNG and the SME Corporation (SMEC) in Port Moresby.
Save the Children country director Fiu Williame-Igara said it was an initiative by the Hand Heart Pocket Foundation to help young Papua New Guineans.
“We acknowledge the Hand Heart Pocket Foundation for providing US$500,000 (about K1.7 million) to drive this programme to target 360 youths,” she said.
Williame-Igara said it was a mixture of males and females as well as people living with disability.
“Of the seven boys and eight girls, four are people living with a disability,” she said.
“So we are happy that we can also work with the government in aiding the success of this programme with their entrepreneurial skills and expertise to young people.”
SMEC managing director Petrus Ralda said the memorandum was part of their mandate to partner with stakeholders in meeting the demands of citizens.
“Through our strategy of alignment and integration, we are looking to deliver services through private-private partnership, government-private partnership and government-church partnership,” he said.
“As a government institute, we will work with any organisation that supports SMEs as we work towards filling the gaps of joblessness and sustainable living for young people.”