Business View Caribbean | Volume 8, Issue 9

9 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 8, ISSUE 9 • The Pitch Tank Competition is one of the main components of the project “Urban Labs for Youth Innovation in Jamaica”, implemented by The Trust for the Americas, through the DIA program (Democratizing Innovation in the Americas) and the financial support of Citi Foundation. • This year, The Trust for the Americas and Citi Foundation awarded 22 entrepreneurial projects with more than USD 20,000 F or the last 6 years, The Trust for the Americas, in partnership with Citi Foundation, and the Institute of Law and Economics (ILE), has held a series of Pitch Tank Competitions as part of the DIA program to promote solutions that generate livelihood opportunities and good governance in the Caribbean by bringing together academia, civil society, government officials, private sector entities, entrepreneurs, and young innovators. The initiative’s goal also aims to continue nurturing innovation and entrepreneurship in Jamaican youth. On August 12th, the best 22 endeavors were presented with certificates and funding of up to USD 1,000 during a virtual event. High level public and private representatives attended the virtual event including, Ms. Jamie-Ann Chevannes, Senior Director of the Youth & Adolescents Policy Division (YAPD) from Jamaica’s Ministry of Education, Youth & Information; Mrs. Linda Eddleman, Chief Executive Officer at The Trust for the Americas; Rodrigo Iriani, Senior Program Manager DIA; Quimey del Rio, Senior Program Officer DIA; Dwayne Gutzmer, CEO of the Institute of Law & Economics; and Shanae Owen, Project Officer JAMAICAN ENTREPRENEURS RECEIVE FUNDING IN THE DIA LAB PITCH TANK COMPETITION and Lab Coordinator of ILE. Ms. Chevannes, Senior Director of the Youth & Adolescents Policy Division from Jamaica’s Ministry of Education, Youth & Information Youth’s Division, commented: “I embrace all efforts done by the participants, especially in the field of sustainable agriculture. Due to the food security crisis that we face in Jamaica, we seek to encourage our youth to get involved and invest in activities that support agricultural production, capacity building, goods and services, logistics and value addition as service providers and entrepreneurs.” Linda Eddleman, Chief Executive Officer at The Trust for the Americas, stated: “Our DIA program has been fostering innovation and empowering new generations to engage in OPENING L INES