BUY LOCAL, SUPPORT LOCAL AT EVERYTHING VINCY EXPO 2022
Over 140 exhibitors are participating in the 2022 “Everything Vincy Expo” which was officially launched on October 24th at the Geest Cargo Terminal-Expo Village, in Kingstown, St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Hon. Camillo Gonsalves, who delivered the feature address at the opening ceremony on Monday, said the “Everything Vincy Expo” is in line with the Government’s policy to provide the enabling environment for the emergence and growth of new and existing entrepreneurs across this country.
Minister Gonsalves said over 1000 entrepreneurs have benefited so far from the Promoting Youth Micro Enterprises (PRYME) program. These beneficiaries, the minister says, have been allowed to have their ideas tested without the burden of repayment to a financial institution.
“A spirit of entrepreneurship in SVG is unleashed and finds fertile ground to grow,” said the Finance Minister.
The Everything Vincy EXPO not only highlights Vincentian businesses but it also serves as an incubator for the advancement of entrepreneurship throughout the country and promotes buying local products.
Title sponsor, the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan) contributed US$40,000 to ensure the fourth staging of the annual event, after a two year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Deputy Counselor at the Taiwanese Embassy, Trinidad Chen, said they are pleased to be associated with the “Everything Vincy Expo”, noting that the event provides a platform for new and existing entrepreneurs to earn revenue.
Among this year’s exhibitors, she said, are entrepreneurs who participated in the “Women’s Empowerment Project”, a programme co-sponsored by Government of SVG and the Embassy of the ROC (Taiwan).
First implemented in October 2017, the ‘Everything Vincy’ Expo is spearheaded by Invest SVG.
Executive Director of Invest SVG, Annette Mark, in her remarks at the launch on Monday, noted the absence of the expo for the past two years following the challenges brought on by Covid-19 and the eruptions of the La Soufriere Volcano.
Adding that the event has grown since its inception in 2017 from 40 exhibitors to over 130 this year, Mark said efforts are being made to host the event at a different location in the future to accommodate even more exhibitors.
