Smec aims to build incubation centres in provinces

Business

BUSINESS incubation centres should be where the micro-small-medium enterprises (MSME) grow, says an official.
Small-Medium Enterprises Corporation (Smec) managing director Petrus Ralda said they wanted to build business incubation centres with the provincial governments and district development authorities.
“Availability of state land was the major criteria used for the selection of a province for the development of regional MSME incubation centres,” he said.
“The other three regional projects are delayed due to funding constraints and state-land availability.”
The Smec partnered with the West New Britain government to build a New Guinea Island regional incubation centre.
“The Kimbe MSME incubation centre design consists of a two-story building with a capacity to host 40 MSME incubation spaces.
“The building will also contain office spaces for business compliance and regulatory agencies, training rooms, research and development facilities, conference rooms, banking and financing facilities, business management, and marketing and, financial advisory facilities.”
Ralda said the MSME incubation centre was designed to provide a one-stop support centre.
There are plans to build similar incubation centres in other centres in partnership with local authorities.
“We want to create spaces as a one stop shop for people who want to get into small business ideas,” he said.
“We are going to look at the entre point, get SMEs and those business ideas with export opportunities, product, business ideas that will start small and go up and become exportable products and commodities.
“The major constrain that we experience for small business people is that they do not have the facilities, communication and market access, so what we will do is that we will incubate them there and we will train them on how to run those businesses and we will look for market and give them training.”