Prime Minister Mark Phillips yesterday officially declared opened the Linden Town Week Entrepreneurs’ Village and Arts Festival which was organised by the Region 10 Youth Entrepreneurship Association (REYA) at the Linden Technical Institute, Linden.
Phillips who delivered featured remarks, announced that the Office of the Prime Minister will officially adopt the event so that it is an added annual feature of the Linden Town Week activities, the Department of Public Information (DPI) said.
“I want to commend you, I want to reassure you, that you will now be formally adopted by the Office of the Prime Minister and we will continue to ensure that what started small here in the true concept of entrepreneurship is developed. And it will grow into a huge facility that is profitable, that will give back to the community. And we’ll see more young people being encouraged and motivated to get into entrepreneurship, to get into establishing your own businesses.”
The Prime Minister who holds responsibility for the Linden Electricity Com-pany Incorporated under his portfolio, also announced that the electricity cost for the event will be subsidised.
Phillips also commended the organisers of the Linden Town Week Entrepreneurs’ Village and Arts Festival, DPI said.
“I will be a major promoter of this festival,” he said, adding that the administration has a history of supporting Linden, which it will continue to do.
“Our government, the government that I am Prime Minister of, is a people centred, is a pro-business facilitator government and is a government that believes in you, our youth taking over now. So, what you’re doing here today, with having this entrepreneurship village an arts festival, to sensitise more and more young people to get into business, to get into establishing their own businesses is a step in the right direction.”
He added, “As we create the environment for greater investment in Linden through ensuring there’s additional power supply, to ensure there’s an expansion in bauxite mining activities, through the promotion of tourism in Linden, many small businesses that you the youth have already established and will be establishing soon will benefit, because you will now have the opportunity to supply the services and the goods that will be demanded when there’s an increase in economic activity.”
While encouraging the leaders of the Region 10 Youth Entrepreneur Association to present a business plan that can be discussed at the level of government, he also informed the youth that government efforts to support youth empowerment have increased in line with its visions and commitment to young people, DPI said.
“We have a young president and he is pro-business, pro-development and always ready to support any idea that is coming from the youths of Guyana that will develop themselves, develop the community and eventually contribute to the overall development of Guyana.”
