The Ministry of Commerce has awarded a contract for the hosting of small business workshops to the Chamber of Commerce.

The contract was awarded on 25 August after a tendering process. The agreement will see the Chamber begin hosting interactive sessions in October, using the expertise of its membership as facilitators.

Outsourcing the workshops will allow the Department of Commerce and Investment (DCI), which previously hosted the workshops, to better focus on licensing and regulation for commerce activities, says Commerce Minister Wayne Panton.

‘Government is committed to the support of small businesses and given their dominance in our economy, their success translates to growth in our economy, expanded job creation and support for our middle class’ he said. ‘The continuation of small business workshops will greatly assist entrepreneurs by providing them with opportunities to improve their skills in a range of key management areas to promote strength and growth’.

Minister Panton said that outsourcing the workshops is part of Government’s

enhancements for small business, which includes the recently announced extension of incentives for micro and small business owners until 31 August 2016.

In addition, small businesses continue to benefit from additional steps taken by Government to lower the costs of doing business. These include the reduction in import duty for licensed traders from 22% down to 20% in 2014, the reduction, by 25 cents per gallon, in fuel duty for CUC’s pass through of fuel cost in January of this year and the further reduction, by another 25 cents, for an aggregate of 50 cents reduction in fuel duty per gallon to be in place in January 2016.

The Chamber’s CEO Wil Pineau said the 90-minute, free workshops will take place monthly. Sessions will focus on a number of areas that affect small businesses, such as regulatory matters, marketing, social media, banking and finance, business planning, human resources, debt collection and management.

‘The Chamber is pleased to have been awarded the contract to deliver free workshops that will benefit micro and small businesses in the Cayman Islands’, Mr Pineau said.

‘The workshops are intended to improve small businesses by providing them with useful information and guidance on key topics. We look forward to working in partnership with the Ministry of Commerce in the months ahead’.

IMAGE: Credit to Matthew Yates, MFSCE. Photo caption (IMG_2057): Chamber of Commerce CEO Wil Pineau and Ministry of Commerce Deputy Chief Officer Tamara Ebanks signed off on the contract.