On Tuesday October 10th, the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) invited the President of the Optimist Club of Anguilla, Penny Hope-Ross, to attend the award ceremony for the Junior Achievement programme that was started in St. Kitts a year ago.

Governor of the ECCB Sir Dwight Venner handing over the Trophy for most outstanding company to the CEO (Jacquan Cole) of the St. Theresa’s Convent School - Locally Yours.

Third and fourth year students from the different high schools in St. Kitts formed Junior Achievement Clubs where they had learnt entrepreneurial skills with the help of volunteers from the business community and the Ministry of Education. Each club formed a company which wrote a business plan, researched the market for its products and produced jewelry and other items for the tourist market. One company chose to offer a tutoring service.

The clubs generated equity capital for their companies by selling shares to other students and parents at EC$5 a share and sold their products at a trade show organized by the ECCB. At the end of the school year they liquidated the companies and produced financial reports to show how much profit had been made which meant a return on equity for their shareholders. All the companies made a profit, some more than others, but more importantly the students learnt about running their own business.

After the award ceremony the invited representatives from all of the member countries met to discuss how the Junior Achievement programme works in other countries in the Eastern Caribbean. Antigua has a very successful programme which is sponsored by Stanford Bank and the Rotary Club. In St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada Junior Achievement is sponsored by the Ministry of Education and the Chamber of Commerce.

Penny Hope-Ross, together with members of the Optimist Club, is hoping to work with the Chamber of Commerce, the Ministry of Education and other interested parties to start a Junior Achievement programme in Anguilla. More information on the Junior Achievement programme can be found on the web site www.ja.org.

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