Enterprising students from North Wales colleges have been battling it out with 6,000 other Welsh students to reach the Wales finals of the Global Entrepreneurship Challenge.
Over three days 118 students from 19 colleges throughout Wales took part in the Challenge at The Urdd Centre in Cardiff Bay.
Each team taking part in the Challenge had won an individual college competition in which 6,000 students from throughout Wales took part.
Teams from Coleg Cambria, Coleg Llandrillo, Coleg Menai and Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor narrowly missed out on a place in the global finals in Germany in June after a team from Merthyr College scooped the overall final place.
The objective of the annual Challenge is to give 16-19-year-olds the opportunity to become more entrepreneurial by developing skills and competing against peer in an attempt to get through to the GEC finals in Germany this June.
Part of the Big Ideas Wales campaign the Challenge is funded by the Welsh Government and European Regional Development Fund to increase awareness of entrepreneurial opportunities of young people in Wales.
This is a key action of its Youth Entrepreneurship Strategy for Wales Action Plan 2010-15.
Deputy Minister for Skills, Ken Skates AM, launched the Challenge last Tuesday before the young people took part in a series of events and activities leading up to the final on Wednesday.
“We have a wealth of entrepreneurial talent in Wales and the Global Entrepreneurship Challenge is one way of tapping into that,” said Mr Skates.
“Many of these young people will use the skills and experience they learn over the two days to pursue enterprises in their own lives in the future. Entrepreneurs are vital for Wales and these young people from all parts of our country are business leaders of the future.”
The 19 teams of students were tasked with setting up a social enterprise to deliver a product of service that would be sustainable with their college.
This included developing a business plan and pitching the business idea to a panel of judges.
Members of the teams said they gained considerable experience from the Challenge.
“The support of mentors and entrepreneurs during the Challenge provide some great experience. We had a great time and we’ll take back to college what we’ve learned about entrepreneurship.”
Among speakers at the event were entrepreneur David Hieatt who founded Howies clothing before setting up the Do Lectures in West Wales and Hiutt Denim, and Maria Leijerstam, the first person to cycle to the South Pole.
