Knowledge of the Art, founded and managed by Irashad Awar Ally Jackaria since 2003, has won the Shell Live Wire 2004. He has been awarded Rs 25,000, an air ticket to London and a trophy. His company trains young people wishing to work in call centres and also acts as a recruiting agency.

Although the company has not won astronomical sums of money or contracts, Shell Live Wire is a way of making a budding company known locally and abroad. Thanks to this competition organized by Shell International with the collaboration of Shell Mauritius Ltd, the University of Mauritius, the Small and Medium Industries Development Organisation (SMIDO), the winners get a full media coverage. “Even if there’s no significant change with this award, it allows us to be exposed to the public and makes us known,” says Mahen Sumputh, a young entrepreneur.

Launched in 2000 in Mauritius, this program encourages young entrepreneurs to set up their own business and gives them the necessary information in terms of financial and administrative help to succeed. It includes a range of activities like awareness raising campaigns over the island and in Rodrigues.

The Live Wire program was created and launched in 1982 by Shell in England. In Mauritius it has already recorded the participation of some 1 706 young entrepreneurs so far. 468 of them have taken part in the three-day training sessions “Set up a small enterprise”. 21 young people set up their companies between 2001 and 2003 and five embarked on this adventure in 2004.

This initiative by Shell is a good way of boosting young people. Many must be attracted by the idea but they do not dare to do it. “Even if there is a culture of entrepreneurship in Mauritius, there are still many efforts to be done to offer young people the necessary conditions to set up their own business,” admits Christine Rungasamy, manager of WV Communications and “Most Successful Young Entrepreneur” of Shell Livewire 2003.