LVS launches Youth Social Enterprise Programme

According to a World Bank report titled ‘The challenge of youth employment in Sri Lanka’ educated young people make up a third of Sri Lanka’s unemployed, while young workers in informal employment account for a third of the total workforce. 

With the aim of developing skills on social entrepreneurship, employability and innovation among youth, Lanka Social Ventures (LSV) is launching its latest incubator programme “Youth Social Enterprise Incubator Programme” this month. 

This programme is specially designed for young social entrepreneurs aged between 18 and 25 interested in starting up businesses that address social or environmental issues. The duration of the programme is 12-months and during this period the participants will be provided personalised business coaching, mentoring, specialised training and other business support enabling them to start their own social enterprises at the completion of the programme. 

The participants with realistic social enterprise ideas will be provided general and bespoke business support and other resources through a structured and comprehensive programme delivered by experts and accredited by a professional institute in the United Kingdom. 

In addition, a dedicated business coach will be allocated for each participant to gain knowledge and skills on management, finance, marketing, technical, legal etc.
For those completing the programme successfully, financial assistance in the form of a startup grant will be provided and also will be assisted to raise funds from mainstream financial service providers to launch the businesses. 

This programme will be conducted in two stages: In the first stage, those interested in the programme can come to IDEALAB - “social enterprise awareness session” held at Anuradhapura, Batticaloa, Colombo, Galle, Jaffna and Kandy districts. At this event, the candidates will be able to discuss and present their business ideas to the selection panel. Forty candidates will be chosen for the final selection and will be notified within 3 days of the event. 

At the second stage 40 finalists will present their fine-tuned business ideas at IDEATOR event to the selection panel out of which 25 will be selected for the Incubator programme. The remaining finalists will be provided required support through a separate short-term programme if they wish to pursue with their business ideas. 
For enquiries and further information about the programme contact Hasanthi on 0766911188 or mail to [email protected]