Do you know Ramu Uyyala? or Elijah Daramola? or Nuwan Gunasekara? Until yesterday neither did I, however, these young individuals were the finalists for the Youth Business International Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 hosted in Edinburgh, Scotland on November 6. In only its second year of existence, the award has attracted the attention of business leaders, government officials and policy makers from over 35 countries. Based on this information you might think that this award was designed for a dot com entrepreneur who has made a fortune developing some outstanding financial algorithm or the next Google. In truth it is quite the opposite. To begin, I believe it would be beneficial to define who Youth Business International (YBI) actually supports. The following information is taken from the YBI website and it gives a brief overview of the program’s mission and recent success:

The Prince’s Youth Business International (YBI) is an international network of programs that help disadvantaged young people to become entrepreneurs by providing business mentoring and funds. Our network comprises 38 locally based, independent initiatives that adopt the YBI model to meet national needs and conditions. Each local program operates on three common principles: they support young people, typically aged between 18-30, who have a good business idea but who cannot obtain help elsewhere; they provide access to start-up funds in the form of a loan without the need for guarantees or collateral; and they provide the young entrepreneur with a volunteer business mentor and access to business networks. Our goal is to build the size and the capabilities of the network to enable the program to help more young entrepreneurs start their own business. The YBI network has helped to start over 90,000 successful new businesses which in turn have provided employment to hundreds of thousands of others. In 2007 the YBI network helped over 6,300 new entrepreneurs, achieving a three-year annual growth rate of 37%. YBI is part of a group of 20 not-for-profit organizations of which The Prince of Wales is President. YBI was founded in 1999 and became an independent organization in 2008.

For those that hold the view that the Net Generation is comprised of video-game addicts that mooch off their parents, the stories of these young entrepreneurs is truly inspiring. Take for instance the story of winner Ramu Uyyala, a manufacturer from India. His business (M.R. Plastics) uses recyclable plastic bags to make new bags. From an initial start-up loan of $1,000.00 (USD) in 2005, Ramu’s business produced a net profit of almost $8,000 in 2007 and has grown so quickly that he now provides employment for 40 staff, some of whom are marginalized women. To read more about Ramu and other youth entrepreneurs from around the world, click here.

Although this strays from my usual discussions about marketing in a Web 2.0 world, these young entrepreneurs and the YBI program that supports them, definitely deserve recognition for the positive impact they are making. With the potential for such economically uncertain times ahead, knowing that bright young minds such as these are receiving the help they need in order to create sustainable and beneficial enterprises for themselves and their communities is a comforting thought. If you or anyone you know is aware of someone who may be eligible for such an award, I encourage you to visit the site for further information.