OPPORTUNITY SALONE PROJECT: BACKGROUND AND TARGET BENEFICIARIES
Opportunity Salone Project is part of a larger EU funded Jobs and Growth Programme implemented by a number of partners that aim to stimulate job creation by improving the investment climate through enhanced access to finance, improving rural transport infrastructure, and upgrading human capital through general and vocational training and education.
Opportunity Salone aims to contribute to more decent job creation in terms of quantity and quality for beneficiaries who reside mainly in rural areas in Sierra Leone through inclusive value chain development focused on SMEs and cooperatives, and feeder road maintenance to improve access to markets.
The project will be implemented over a 4-year period in the following districts: Bo, Kenema Bombali, and Port Loko.
The overall development objective of the Programme is to contribute to large scale job creation and job quality improvement in sustainable enterprises for unskilled and semi – skilled youth, women and persons with disabilities. In promotion of its objectives, the Programme is pursuing 3 major outcomes:
- Enhanced, conflict-sensitive, agricultural value chain and entrepreneurship development for SMEs, youth, women, and persons with disabilities.
- Improved feeder road maintenance contributing to resolve infrastructure bottlenecks to immediate job creation.
- Improved business environment for entrepreneurship development and feeder road maintenance.
PURPOSE OF THE CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
The SLLCA has secured funding from the ILO Opportunity Salone Project to support Small Local Businesses that are into production and sale of BEAUTY PRODUCTS and those into the production and sale of BREAD, PASTRY and CONFECTIONERY PRODUCTS.
As mandated by law, SLLCA was set up by government to promote the use of local resources in all economic endeavors. Therefore, the agency would like to promote the use of PALM KERNEL OIL in the production of beauty products and high-quality CASSAVA FLOUR in bread and other bakery products. This is because most of our locally produced beauty products are currently made from imported ingredients and almost all our bakery products are made from imported wheat flour.
Therefore, promoting the use of locally available PALM KERNEL OIL and high-quality CASSAVA FLOUR in these two sectors will help cut down on the importation of these ingredients hence contributing to macroeconomic stability.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
To be eligible for this call, your business MUST fulfil ALL the following criteria:
- Be in at least one of the following product lines stated above.
- Be located in one of the target districts stated above.
- Be able to assemble the equipment you need to produce your product, without reliance onthe project for support.
- Be able to attend an interview, and if selected, be able to attend a one-day training sessionon business competition pitching and basic entrepreneurship.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
If you are interested in taking part in the competition, please do the following:
- Collect the application form at the District Council Office in your district or from the Local Content Agency Office at #21 Steward Street (3rd & 4th floors), Off Sanders Street Freetown. Or download the form from the agency’s website: www.localcontent.gov.sl
- Carefully fill the application form, making sure you provide all the requested information and supporting documents.
- Return the completed form to the District Council Office where you collected it, or to the Agency’s Office in Freetown or send it to the agency’s email address: info@localcontent.gov.sl
- If required, contact the following numbers for further enquiries: +232 76 942 230 /033 589 678/ +232 76 610 468
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING
- Deadline for the submission of all completed application forms is close of business on 31st August 2023. No application will be considered after this deadline.
- Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted for interview.End