The National Development Foundation of Dominica (NDFD) is urging more men to get involved in its training programmes.
According to NDFD Executive Director, Ronald Knight, the majority of people accessing the foundation’s programmes at the moment are women.
Knight says his agency takes very seriously, its mandate to provide training.
“Mostly over the last three years we have really stepped up our training, and we do on average 15 trainings a year. We try our best to do innovative training,” Knight told Dominica News Online.
“On an annual basis we have about 500 participants. We’ve found that it’s generally been more female than male, so we’ve been trying to appeal more to the male members of the private sector to try to take part in the training sessions as much as possible,” the NDFD boss said.
He believes his organization is making a meaningful contribution to making the Dominican workforce more competitive.
“We’re trying to form a little niche in there in terms of ensuring that people are more efficient, people are more productive in different aspects of their business life,” Knight told DNO.
He is convinced that Dominica “on a whole can be more competitive”.
The NDFD’s core business is micro-finance, making loans available to small businesses.
NDFD is doing sooo much for the small business and agriculture sector! In addition to providing funding they also assist by working with clients to develop effective strategies for starting the projects. They provide marketing advice as well as accounting services and training for these small business owners who are not too savvy with the techniques. To the government: you catch more flies with honey. Help NDFD to help yourselves. When the loyal clients of NDFD see your assistance, they might as well become loyal to you too. The small business and agriculture sector is important these days and with the assistance that NDFD is providing, Dominica is on it’s way to a more productive AND professional work force!
Once again, it is an honour that a young man from the Roseau Valley area (originally) is at the helm of a national institution like the NDFD. The NDFD has assisted many budding small businesses in the Roseau Valley area (small furniture manufacturers, welders, seamstresses, snackettes and bars, hairdressers, mechanics and body work garages, agricultural projects, small guesthouses etc). This institution has and continues to make a meaningful contribution to the socio-economic development of the country. Its micro financing helps small businesses to create jobs and to build the spirit of entrepreneurship in our communities. Government should perhaps recognize the significant contribution of the NDFD and instead of throwing public funds away through the red clinic, it needs to make a substantive contribution of the NDFD so that it can continue to provide small loans to small business people. We can be assured that the funds will be used wisely and in a transparent and accountable manner. Moreover, this would activate the multiplier effect in our dying economy.
Good work NDFD!