CONFUSION erupted at the National Entrepreneurship Development Company Ltd (Nedco) yesterday after a media release announced the closure of its Micro and Small Business (MSB) Grant Scheme, a decision that both the Minister of Labour and the newly appointed board chairman say was never approved by them.<\/p>\n
According to Nedco\u2019s website, the MSB Grant Scheme was established by the Government to support entrepreneurs in Trinidad and Tobago by providing financial assistance and resources. The grant is open to individuals with a business idea, a start-up, or an existing business.<\/p>\n
The release stated that the scheme had been closed and that applications already submitted were under review for final selection.<\/p>\n
However, when contacted yesterday, both Minister of Labour and Small Enterprise Development and line minister for Nedco Leroy Baptiste, and the newly installed chairman of the board, Ken Lakhan, expressed surprise at the announcement. They stressed that no decision to end the programme had been taken.<\/p>\n
Minister Baptiste told the Express that the board was installed less than two weeks ago and confirmed that no such decision had been taken. He also assured that the release was being retracted and directed further questions to the chairman.<\/p>\n
When pressed on who authorised the release, Lakhan said it was issued at the management level. He added that the move was \u201cpremature\u201d and had not been sanctioned by the board.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was not sanctioned by the board at all, that is why it is being retracted. We are in discussions of the way forward. Closing it down is not one of the options,\u201d Lakhan said. He added that the decision was \u201cmanagement level, a decision that they took without approval. The CEO did mention it to us that they have 4,000 applications right now and because of the amount of applications it does not make sense taking more at this point in time.\u201d<\/p>\n
He reiterated that management \u201cdid it without I knowing this, I did not sign off on this; the board did not vote on this. This has to be retracted.\u201d<\/p>\n
Overwhelming<\/p>\n
response<\/p>\n
Earlier yesterday Nedco posted the statement on its website and social media accounts advising that the scheme had been closed, and that applications already submitted were now under review for final selection.<\/p>\n
When the Express visited the social media account on Instagram around 6.30 p.m., the release had been removed. However it remained on its website under its news section.<\/p>\n
On its Facebook (FB) account, it indicated that the first meeting of the Nedco board of directors was held at Nedco\u2019s Head Office, Queen\u2019s Park East, Port of Spain, on August 20. \u201cThe board will play a pivotal role in shaping the strategic direction of Nedco, ensuring the continued development and sustainability of the entrepreneurship sector,\u201d it stated then on FB.<\/p>\n
The media release issued yesterday also stated that, \u201cSince its launch, the MSB Grant Scheme has received an overwhelming response, with over 4,000 applications submitted against a programme capacity of 2,000. To date, 459 micro and small businesses across Trinidad and Tobago have benefited from essential funding and resources to establish and grow their ventures\u201d.<\/p>\n
Nedco said the programme had supported businesses in 19 sectors, including agriculture, healthcare, ICT and entertainment, with strong representation in personal services (14%), food sales and processing (11%), and manufacturing (9%).<\/p>\n
\u201cGrant recipients have leveraged funding to expand services, acquire equipment, enhance service quality, and secure new market opportunities, contributing to business growth and employment generation,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n
Success stories<\/p>\n
Highlighting the programme\u2019s inclusivity, Nedco noted that 61% of recipients were female, with an even split between younger entrepreneurs (18\u201335 years) and experienced owners (over 35 years). Recipients came from both Trinidad (89%) and Tobago (11%). Many have secured contracts with organisations such as the Marriott Hotel and Heritage Petroleum, launched telehealth services, and strengthened their online presence, said the release.<\/p>\n
The release also quoted a comment by Nedco chief executive officer Calvin Maurice, that \u201cdespite the closure of this grant, Nedco\u2019s commitment to promoting entrepreneurship in Trinidad and Tobago remains stronger than ever. The success stories we\u2019ve witnessed from expanding art schools to securing international contracts – highlight the power of strategic support for our entrepreneurial community.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe incredible achievements of MSB Grant recipients – from launching second products to forming international partnerships – show what\u2019s possible when we invest in our entrepreneurs. We will continue developing innovative ways to assist the business community,\u201d said Amoy Van Lowe, Head Programme Coordinator.<\/p>\n
The release added that Nedco continues to support entrepreneurs through business training and development programmes, mentorship and consultative services, networking events, and access to financial opportunities.<\/p>\n
Entrepreneurs who missed the MSB Grant application deadline were being encouraged to explore these alternatives and remain engaged with Nedco for future initiatives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CONFUSION erupted at the National Entrepreneurship Development Company Ltd (Nedco) yesterday after a media release announced the closure…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":121542,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[28,158,3729,3],"class_list":{"0":"post-121541","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entrepreneurship","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-entrepreneurship","10":"tag-local","11":"tag-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121541"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121541\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}