Promoting entrepreneurship among Goa’s youth figured as the main point of discussion during a visit by state government officials to EDII Ahmedabad, writes Team B&C
A high-level government delegation comprising secretary industries Suneel Anchipaka, director industries, trade and commerce Asvin Chandru, officials of the education department, skill development, information & publicity department and EDC Ltd, visited Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), Ahmedabad to study and brainstorm over the strategy to promote entrepreneurship in Goa.
The visit of the delegation is an outcome of the setting up of the EDII, Goa chapter to promote entrepreneurship education & training amongst the local youth and student. EDII, based in Gandhinagar, is one of the best entrepreneurship colleges in India, offering management and entrepreneurship development courses. The institute promotes entrepreneurship through education, training, applied research and institution building. It not only operates as a startup incubator, but also helps existing SMEs and family managed businesses improve their core competencies.
The EDII-Goa centre was inaugurated on March 12, 2024, with the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant instrumental behind the institute being set up. In one year of operations in the state, EDII has supported the growth of new enterprises in new and upcoming areas, boosted existing MSMEs, provided entrepreneurship education and rural development leading to inclusive entrepreneurship advancement.
The Goa delegation brainstormed over the transformative power of entrepreneurship and the ways to effectively leverage cutting-edge technologies and entrepreneurial parameters to ensure a positive and upbeat entrepreneurial landscape in Goa
Officials talked about youth power and discussed how local youth could be persuaded to play a significant role in the sphere of entrepreneurship development.
The discussions centered around creating micro-incubators in colleges and the university campus to nurture and incubate creative ideas of students, in addition to training and counselling them in entrepreneurial dynamics.
The theme of discussions were startups, innovations, technology advancement, MSME growth, women entrepreneurship promotion and rural development.
The discussions reaffirmed the commitment of EDII and the government to harness the potential of Goan human resources.
There are various schemes to encourage youth to become job givers instead of job seekers. The Chief Minister’s Rojgar Yojana (CMRY) scheme, of EDC promote self employment among the youth by providing loans for starting new businesses or expanding existing ones. As of January 1, 2025, the scheme has sanctioned loans to 7,897 beneficiaries, amounting to Rs 25,503.78 lakh since its inception in 2001.
Under the CMRY scheme the loan limit for professionals and technically qualified persons is Rs 25 lakh and for others it is Rs 20 lakh, repayable over a maximum period of 7 years. Women, OBC or disabled beneficiaries who avail assistance under the scheme have to bear only 5 per cent of the project cost as their contribution while others have to bear 10 per cent of the project cost.
Startup Goa provides financial assistance to startups through several incentive schemes. There are 241 certified startups presently and the startup ecosystem consists of six incubators and over 100 mentors.
Besides the Goa State Rural Livelihood Mission, assists in the formation of self-help groups as a means for women to become self-employed and earn livelihood.
