65 / 246
63
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
I-USAHAWAN
The i-Usahawan programme is an initiative
by the Ministry of Energy to support young
Bruneians to start, own and grow their own
business. Through this programme, participants
have the opportunity to secure their first
contract with government, government-linked
companies (GLCs) and statutory bodies.
Launched in August 2018 in conjunction with
the National Youth Day, the programme is
a close collaboration between the Ministry
of Energy, contract owners and training
providers to develop entrepreneurship skills
through continuous mentorship throughout the
business contract for a minimum of three years.
The programme also acts as a platform for
entrepreneurs to grow their business into multi-
national companies.
A number of contracts have been awarded
by various companies under the i-Usahawan
programme over the past year. On March
6, 2019, three contracts were awarded.
One contract was awarded by Brunei Shell
Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd (BSP) to Syarikat
Amira Barakah for the provision of canteen and
vending machine services at BSP Headquarters.
The remaining two contracts were awarded by
Brunei Gas Carriers Sdn Bhd (BGC). The first
contract was awarded to Mortar Events for
the provision of event management services,
whereas the second contract was awarded
to Munch Brunch Canteen for the provision of
cleaning, manpower and related services.
In July 2019, a contract signing ceremony was
held for two local start-up companies to provide
their services to Brunei National Petroleum
Company Sdn Bhd (PetroleumBRUNEI) under
i-Usahawan. PeteroleumBRUNEI signed the
contracts with OCD-BN and DMOS Technologies
to provide office cleaning services and printing
services respectively.
The following month, Total E&P Borneo
BV (TEPB) awarded its first contract under
the i-Usahawan programme to Mohd HMS
Enterprise to provide air-conditioning services
and maintenance. The mentoring programme
will facilitate the growth and development of
the vendor in areas including health, safety and
environment as well as business management.
As the driving force of the local economy, it
is important for young entrepreneurs to gain
experience and build their skills. The i-Usahawan
programme bridges the gap between budding
entrepreneurs and established companies in
Brunei Darussalam. With this programme,
entrepreneurs can gain hands-on experience
and fulfill their potential, securing bigger
business opportunities in the future.