Creativity, independence and an entrepreneurial spirit. These are the qualities being encouraged by La Oliva Town Council, through its Youth Department, among vocational training students and first- and second-year sixth-form pupils at the municipality’s schools, through the ‘La Oliva emprende’ initiative. A total of 250 students will receive mentoring to create a business project on a topic of their choice, with imagination as the only limit.
Over a series of sessions running from September to December at IES Corralejo and IES La Oliva, the young people will attend talks designed to foster entrepreneurial skills. Qualities such as critical thinking, problem-solving, confidence, resilience in learning from mistakes, oral communication and the ability to defend ideas, planning and resource management, and independence and decision-making will be key not only to launching their business proposals but also to serving as life skills for various aspects of their adult lives.
With the ongoing support of specialist technical staff, the young people will develop their business ideas from September to November, before coming together for a final event on 18 December at the Auditorio Municipal in Corralejo. During the event, they will present their proposals, and the best business idea will receive a €3,000 grant to help launch the venture. In addition, the three finalists will receive continued mentoring and training, have an audiovisual piece produced about their project, have their professional profile created, and benefit from networking support with local business owners and municipal promotion.
The Mayor of La Oliva, Isaí Blanco, explained: “This is a unique opportunity to encourage an entrepreneurial spirit among our young people, as participants will be able to let their imagination run free, supported by successful entrepreneurs and technical staff. The aim is not only to support the ideas of the younger generation, but also to show our young people the possibilities available to them as they begin their professional future, opening their minds to new paths related to their working lives.”
This initiative reflects the local government’s commitment to fostering creativity and entrepreneurship among the municipality’s young people.
