PLEDDG Project held two training courses on business development services for local government officials and local businessmen from its partner cities. The first course was organized on December 12-13, 2016 in Poltava, with the second taking place on December 15-16, 2016 in Vinnytsia.
Both training courses were quite interactive. Participants were invited to a game which involved finding answers to questions like “What kind of services do entrepreneurs need and what kind of services can be provided by local government”. There was also a lively discussion in the format of a “world café”, during which participants discussed the nature of business development services for different categories of entrepreneurs at different stages of a business lifecycle.
The guest speakers included PLEDDG senior experts and consultants: Ihor Lepyoshkin, Senior Expert in Local Governance and Economic Development, Valeriy Kokot, Senior Expert in Business Development, consultants Valentyna Smal, Olena Tykhomyrova, Lidiya Pashchuk and Hennadiy Marushevskyy.
Canadian experience in SME support was shared by business development experts Robert Wayne and Raphael Costa. Robert Wayne explained how creation of business incubators, business accelerators and business service centers helped facilitate the development of SME in Canada. Raphael Costa presented a detailed overview of SME support instruments based on success stories of his hometown Vaughan (Ontario).
Participants received practical knowledge of business services for different categories of entrepreneurs, including young people, women, “green” business, social enterprise. This knowledge will help the cities develop a step-by-step plan for establishing an effective system of business service provision.
