The U.S. government has launched a fellowship program designed to foster a culture of entrepreneurship in Latin America and the Caribbean, and help the region generate jobs and prosperity. Under the program, known as Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI), Latin American youths wanting to advance their entrepreneurial ideas will undergo training in the United States to sharpen their skills further.
The fellowship includes six weeks of training and immersion at an incubator, accelerator, or civil society organization. Over the course of the program, they will also build networks, links, and partnerships, helping themselves attract investments and support for their entrepreneurial ventures back home.
Every fellow is eligible to access a small grant to fund a start-up or scale up his entrepreneurial activities. The package also includes grants for traveling to conferences and for hosting a U.S. mentor at home country to share expertise.
Entrepreneurs with at least two years of professional experience, and between 21 and 35 years old, are eligible to apply. That’s of course good news for Latin America where more than 58% of population is under 35. Whether it is Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, or Honduras, just about every country in the region is eligible.
According to the White House, the fellowship aims “to foster over 50 formal business and civil society partnerships each year between emerging entrepreneurial and civil society entities in Latin America and the Caribbean with their counterparts in the United States.”
The program resembles the Young African Leaders Initiative that President Obama launched in 2010. Like those in the African fellows program, YLAI fellows may also be invited to the Washington, D.C., for additional exposure.
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