The Government of the Virgin Islands is making good on its promise to support small businesses and provide them with practical tools to enhance the services they provide.

In this regard, business support organisations (BSOs) are invited to a three-day capacity building workshop to further develop their skills to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Business support organisations offer network, coaching and other business support services that can range from, but are not limited to, financial advising, planning and management, business plan writing, branding, marketing and accounting services.

The free workshop, to be held from May 24 to 26, and titled “Managing for Development Results for Business Support Organisations”, is sponsored by the Caribbean Development Bank and the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, in collaboration with the Department of Trade, Investment Promotion and Consumer Affairs.

Director of Trade, Investment Promotion and Consumer Affairs, Mrs. Karia Christopher stated that the workshop for BSOs is timely for BVI small businesses.

She said, “The training will provide the much needed tools that will help our business support organisations to develop a management strategy that focuses on using performance information to improve their decision-making.”

Mrs. Christopher added that participants will learn how to use practical tools for strategic planning, risk management, progress monitoring, and outcome evaluation.

She stated, “Our goal is to ensure all participants walk away with an increased knowledge and understanding of how to effectively utilise these result based tools.”

The workshop starts daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and will be held at the Centre for Applied Marine Studies, Room MA1 at HLSCC. Facilitators are Veterinary Officer in the Department of Agriculture,        Dr. Nadya George, and Coordinator for the Centre for Professional Educational Development and Community Education at the HLSCC, Mrs. Dana Lewis-Ambrose.

The objectives of the training are to equip participants with tools and methodologies to design results-monitoring frameworks in order to measure, monitor and report results in relation to MSME development interventions.  

Interested participants for this workshop should be persons responsible for providing and/or facilitating technical assistance to MSMEs.

To register for the course, persons must submit the pre-registration forms to the Department of Trade, Investment Promotion and Consumer Affairs, Second Floor, Sebastian Building, Road Town, Tortola, Virgin Islands, VG1110.

Alternatively they can be mailed to the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, Attention: Centre for Professional Educational Development and Community Education (CPDCE), P.O. Box 3097, Road Town, Tortola, VG1110, BVI. The completed registration form can also be emailed as a pdf document to cpdce@hlscc.edu.vg. The deadline for registration is Monday, May 16.

Forms are available from the Department of Trade, Investment Promotion and Consumer Affairs or the Centre for Professional Educational Development and Community Education at the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College.