SME encouraged to take advantage of opportunities

 SMALL to medium enterprises and aspiring entrepreneurs must seize windows of opportunities available in the booming extractive industry, a visiting American business expert says.  

Chief of Civil Rights and Economic Empowerment for the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) Samira Cook-Gaines said that is where minor services and products would complement main core businesses.

She said this when asked on how best small entrepreneurs could gain from large industries in Papua New Guinea.

“You have to find the natural intersection of what small men and women are already ready for, they may not be ready to start their own mining companies but there are services, businesses and products that those mining companies should be buying from them,” Cook-Gaines said.

“For example, we have a florist and they (mining company or developer) may have all the buildings etcetera, that florist can provide floral arrangements for the beautification of the offices.

“Cleaning services, whose cleaning those offices? All of these women make meri blouses, who’s making uniforms? So make use of the skills that you have.

“I know that some of them have tapped into the working population and provide lunches but they need to think a little further about all the services because the mining and extraction industry need more than just those natural goods in coals, gas, oil and gold.

“So they have to start thinking about the entire supply chain for that industry, if they can get in all levels I think that will be much more beneficial, it’s all about the intersection.”