Entrepreneurial Certificate Program
Program Objectives:
The Entrepreneurial Development Program objective is available to all people of First Nations Ancestry. This program over a six week span is designed to provide entry- level skills for people who are interested in exploring business opportunities and gaining ownership.
Course Content
Training over the Six weeks includes:
Introduction to Business
Entrepreneurial Development
Business Communications
Starting a Business
Financials
Introduction to Community Development
Who is Eligible?
Aboriginal people residing in our Geographical area who are eligible for sponsorship. This may include people who are on:
Employment Insurance
Income Assistance
Volunteer
Pension
Medical
Geographical Area Served:
This program is offered to those First Nations people living within the Thompson - Shuswap - Nicola - Fraser Canyon - Lillooet - Okanagan area. This Includes Metis, Status, Non-Status, Inuit persons, groups, or businesses living both on and off reserves as well as in urban or rural settings.
Other Benefits:
Nicola Valley Institute of Technology accreditation
105 hour in class training
One-on-one classroom assistance
Computer Access
Internet Access
CFDC of CIFN Resources
Certificate of Completion
Qualified Facilitators
FirstHost Training
True Colors Workshops
Accessible Loans Available:
General Investment Fund
Youth Investment Fund
Loans for Persons with Disabilities
Community Based Micro Lending Circles.
Self Employment Benefits Program
Application Form
Application Form for the Self Employment Benefits Program PDF FILE
Eligibility Requirements
Active Employment Insurance (EI) Claimant or,
Have had an EI Claim within the past three years or,
Have had parental or maternity benefits with pas five years or
Have a viable business idea,
Eligible participants may qualify for up to a maximum of 52 weeks during business start up.
Support Services
1 Income Support ~ EI active clients will continue to receive their EI benefits; Eligible Reach back clients will receive an allowance of up to $333.00/week.
2 Technical Support ~ The following equipment is available but monitored by staff. Registered participants in the program can arrange an appointment to access the services. These services include facsimile machine, photocopier, computer, printer, internet, scanner, and library resources.
3 Training ~ Utilizing First Nations trainers, a six week training course may be implemented in a central locations of the participants. Not all participants will be require the training. The training information is listed above.
4 Referrals ~ Although the staff are available to provide assistance to participants, there are areas that staff does not provide any advice or feedback, such as legal, accounting, taxation and personal counseling. In these case, staff can refer the client to another course of information.
5 Business Counseling ~ The staff of CFDC of CIFN will be available to provide business counseling.
For More Information Contact:
Jackie Bandura, Manager, Training
Phone: 250-828-9727
Supported By: 
