The 2018 Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (YEP) roars into life this week with new and exciting features.
CBZ Holdings in partnership with Empowered Life Trust launched the 2018 edition of YEP in Harare.
Youth Entrepreneurs Program is a practical and results-based initiative to produce growth-oriented (not survivalist) profitable businesses that are run professionally by youth from all 10 Provinces in Zimbabwe. YEP is nurturing a new generation of growth oriented business persons. Many young Zimbabweans graduating from universities, colleges and high schools have no option but to become entrepreneurs due to lack of employment.
The program seeks to improve Zimbabwe youths including those who are in the rural areas through offering business opportunities which will in turn create employment opportunities.
YEP is in-line with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe`s 2016-2020 National Financial Inclusion Strategy as part of efforts to foster economic and social development by increasing fiscal space for previously marginalised key players such as smallholder farmers, women, youth, micro-small to medium scale enterprises in the formal banking system
Through the YEP program 1 875 young people have been trained since 2016 and 52% of the trained are women. In addition 414 businesses have been successfully registered and are fully functional.
The 2017 edition saw over 1 000 young people from the country’s 10 provinces receiving extensive training, 20 received seed money to inject into their businesses, 10 finalists were awarded with prize money to be used in their businesses.
Ropafadzo Zimunya from Manicaland who is manufacturing banana flour walked away with the top prize of US$10,000.00 with Clive Nyapokoto (Mashonaland East) who is doing shift organic farming and Junior Bakasa (Harare) who is manufacturing various top range detergents walked away as 1st runner up (US$7,000.00) and 2nd runner up (US$5,000.00) respectively.
The 2018 edition has been divided into two parts i.e the Start-ups category (Businesses which are still at idea stage up to one year of operation) with the top prize of US$7,000 and the Established Businesses (Maximum of three years in operation) with the top prize of US$5,000. Youths aged 18 – 35years old are eligible to apply.
The program will involve one and half day outreach training to all ten Provinces of Zimbabwe, at least 100 participants will be selected to attend each workshop in each Province. Applications can be done through our extensive branch network as well as an online portal (https://tinyurl.com/cbzyep2018 )
Applications are open from the 7th of August 2018 up to the 31st of August 2018. A YEP Call Centre was launched to assist participants and handle queries regarding the YEP program and other entrepreneurship related questions via YEP Call Centre numbers are 0782 489 653.
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Facebook: CBZ Holdings
Twitter: @cbzholdings
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