SME grants success

Dharmendra Kumar,  Suva

The continued growth of small businesses is essential to sustain an over-all economic development.

However, the growth of small businesses has been historically impeded because of their difficulty in accessing finances from the formal lending sectors.

The scarcity of available funds financing small businesses is a major hindrance.

It is encouraging to read about how successful the Government’s initiative of small and micro business grant is.

Most countries consider SMEs as the backbone of its economy.

Their economic importance cannot therefore be overstated.

It is very important that recipients get a free mentoring package and a six-monthly evaluation must be done to determine its viability and to further improve this scheme.

SMEs deserve a big Vinaka.

Media favouritism

Amenatave Yaconisau, Delainavesi

I agree entirely that a print media outlet is favouring its own writers sometimes giving them more space to express their views more than others.

This is discriminatory and unfair.

The way they treat history and past national heroes is part of this discrimination. They use words of conflict cleverly  and enhance further conflicts of people and institutions as if there was a dominant party.

Such manipulation of public opinion is not on when liberties are clearly protected in the constitution.

TELS testimony

Tukai Lagonilakeba, Nadi

All those in our Opposition today, including those losing candidates from our 2014 National Election criticised, ridiculed and opposed our FijiFirst Government where they labelled the introduction of TELS as discriminatory, a waste of tax payer’s monies and a very bad exercise, including the Free Education Grant.

If one reads through the FijiFirst Party Manifesto of 2014 Fijians will find that the Tertiary Education Loans Scheme was part of our Government’s non discriminatory bigger vision for a smart and literate Fiji irrespective of your social background, religion, race, standing and political affiliation.

As long as the applicant has the marks, guts and the desire to qualify himself/herself  in any field, you have made the cut.

You do not need to go to a bank.

TELS is apolitical and it does not care whether you come from the Fijian families of those in the opposition or whether you did not vote for government, it is for all Fijian children and adults also.

Vinaka Fiji Sun your story Thursday February 15 of my kaivata, 43-year-old Vanuabalavu native Peni Kauivalenibula.

It is an uplifting and inspirational story to all Fijians. He is a beacon of hope for other Fijians who are facing the same situation.

The invention of TELS is visionary, we applaud it and is non discriminatory indeed.lT