A new $300,000 government grant has been launched to assist recent graduates from tertiary education institutions in starting their own businesses. This initiative is part of the Graduate Business Start-Up Grant Scheme, which was established through a Memorandum of Understanding signed this week between the Tertiary Scholarships & Loans Service (TSLS) and the Fiji Commerce & Employers Federation (FCEF).
Approved in the Fiji Government’s 2024-2025 National Budget, the grant will be managed by TSLS and implemented by FCEF. According to Dr. Hasmukh Lal, the chief executive officer of TSLS, this collaboration represents a significant public-private partnership aimed at supporting graduates in their entrepreneurial endeavors and in creating jobs.
The scheme is designed to help graduates diversify the economic landscape of Fiji. Dr. Lal emphasized that current graduates possess innovative entrepreneurial ideas, and the government is prepared to support them through this initiative.
The grant scheme will operate as a comprehensive business incubator model, focusing on enhancing the innovative and scalable business concepts of 30 TSLS-sponsored graduates. The FCEF, which has extensive experience running business accelerator programs over the past five years, will leverage its expertise to support these entrepreneurs.
FCEF President Vinay Narsey stated that the organization is well-equipped with business intelligence and a network of resources to assist the incubates in their business development journey. The graduates will benefit from a variety of services, including business training, coaching, mentoring, and assistance with drafting and finalizing business plans, as well as connections to financing opportunities.
Strategic partnerships with entities such as MSME Fiji, banks, Business Assistance Fiji, and universities will be established at the onset of the program to mitigate risks associated with the incubator and the businesses launched by the graduates.
Applications for the Graduate Business Start-Up Grant Scheme will be open at the end of October 2024.