Prime Minister Bruce Golding singled out high-school leavers for special attention during his contribution to the 2009-10 Budget Debate in Parliament yesterday.
In announcing the Youth Entrepreneurship Programme (YEP), aimed at helping school leavers become employed, Golding said a $250-million loan programme, which is part of a $2.25-billion fillip to the small-business sector, was a demonstration of faith in Jamaica's young people.
"I have faith in the young people of this country. I believe that if we invest that faith in them, they will pay big dividends; they will not let us down," the prime minister said.
Invited to submit ideas
Under YEP, students scheduled to graduate in June are invited to submit ideas about the kinds of enterprise they wish to start.
Those ideas, the prime minister said, would be evaluated by the micro-lending institution, after which students would be selected for participation.
However, before they receive any of the funds, the graduates will be required to attend training seminars across the island to help them manage their businesses.
According to Golding, approximately 39,000 students graduate from high schools each year. He said that 14,000 of them will go on to higher studies and "a tiny minority will be lucky enough to find jobs".
"Approximately 25,000 of them go home with nothing to do. They have acquired some basic skills but do not have the wherewithal to put it to good use," the prime minister said.
But yesterday, he sought to give the assurance that help was near.
"To the young school leavers who are fearful of the emptiness that awaits them after graduation, the word is YEP, you can," the prime minister said.
In the meantime, accessing loans for small, micro and medium-size business could become easier for many Jamaicans, even those without collateral.
Golding announced that an additional $2 billion be set aside this year to help persons create and sustain these businesses.
The prime minister said that high interest rates being charged by banks and a lack of collateral on the part of borrowers have kept many Jamaicans out of businesses.
The prime minister split the $2 billion down the middle for small and micro enterprises.
The funds will be provided through the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) and will be made available through approved financial institutions such as commercial banks.
Maximum loan period
Under the programme for small businesses, persons can obtain loans from $500,000 to $10 million at an interest rate of 12.5 per cent. The maximum period of this loan will be five years.
"Under this arrangement, many who cannot meet the collateral requirements will now be able to get loans to get their businesses going," the prime minister said.
The second $-billion sum is earmarked for an estimated 20,000 micro-entrepreneurs.
Yesterday, Golding underscored that this group of entrepreneurs was very important in the socio-economic fabric of the country.
Golding said that last year, the DBJ provided $200 million under a similar programme, disbursing, on average, $50,000 to micro-business operators.
He told Parliament that over 4,300 persons benefited under this 20-week loan programme last year and added that it has been "a remarkable success with a delinquency rate of four per cent".
daraine.luton@gleanerjm.com