Growth & Jobs | Consider entrepreneurship as a career option – Green

Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Floyd Green, has encouraged tertiary-level students receiving scholarships from the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission (BGLC) to consider entrepreneurship as a viable career option.

Speaking at the commission’s Education Fund ‘Meet and Greet’at Mona Visitors’ Lodge last week, the minister told the students to “study not to only become an employee, but to also try to become an employer”.

“If you want real wealth, it’s [all] about the business plan that you have crafted, work out a way to solve a problem that can be monetised,” he added.

The state minister told them that agriculture is a lucrative area to be considered, noting that for one area of the field, Jamaican farmers only supply 20 per cent of the goat that is needed for local consumption, and that the hotel sector’s demand for vegetables and fruits is worth some $40 billion.

“This is one area that you can easily make 100 and 200 per cent profit, because once there are people, they will always need a supply,” he said.

SOFT SKILLS

The minister also encouraged the students to master their area of study, and to also develop soft skills while undertaking their formal education.

“In the world we live in, it is becoming less important what you study and more important [about] the principles that you grasp in terms of being able to think creatively, solving problems, being flexible, and being able to communicate effectively. Those are the things that are even more important than the course of study,” he argued.

He also reminded the students of the responsibility they have been given in receiving a scholarship from a government entity, and urged them to give back to their community.