Solomon Islands entrepreneurs working within the seafood sector from boat to plate could exponentially expand their businesses through the Fish 2.0 competition launched globally early this month.
Fish 2.0 is a business competition that connects investors with seafood businesses giving them an opportunity to win over $180,000 in prizes, gain international visibility, find strategic partners and ultimately garner new investments for their businesses.
Fish 2.0 is backed by a broad range of over 19 foundations, private investors and corporates.
Fish 2.0 and WWF-Pacific will be holding a workshop for interested businesses from March 10-12 in Fiji, to share information and answer any queries participants from Solomon Islands may have about the Fish 2.0 competition.
At the end of the workshop participants will have learned how to prepare a short business pitch and understand what investors are looking for.
Larger companies will have a chance to understand the business development opportunity offered by Fish 2.0.
This workshop will also provide support for those participants interested to enter the broader Fish 2.0 competition. Application forms to attend the Fish 2.0 Fiji Workshop can be downloaded at this link: http://www.fish20.org/images/fijiworkshop.pdf.
Sally Bailey, Conservation Director, WWF-Pacific says “the workshop is an excellent opportunity for entrepreneurs and existing businesses in the seafood, aquaculture and mariculture sector in the Pacific to improve on their business and help them connect with investors interested in investing in the region.
“We are calling on entrepreneurs in the seafood business in the Solomon Islands to be part of the workshop and because of the limited number of seats available, it’s a first come first serve opportunity and successful applicants will be provided travel stipends.”
With the support of IdEA (a partnership between the US State Department, the Calvert Foundation and USAID), the competition this year is looking to foster the growth of businesses in the Pacific Islands. To inspire Pacific Islanders to enter, Fish 2.0 is offering an additional $45,000 in professional service awards to the top competitors from the Pacific Islands and will pay for the top six businesses from the region to attend the competition finals in California.
There will be 3 streams of entrepreneurs in the competition, including pre revenue start-ups, businesses emerging in the first 3 years of trading and established businesses with over 3 years of trading.
WWF is one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations, with over 5 million supporters and a global network active in over 100 countries.
WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the earth’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world’s biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.
