The FINANCIAL — The French Business Council (FBC) is offering USD 10,000 to students of Caucasus School of Business starting up new business projects in Georgia focused on export and import and exchange services.
“The FBC project consists of creating real businesses, real companies in Georgia with the students of Caucasus School of Business,” says Gilbert Hie, President of FBC, CEO of Bank Republic, Societe Generale Group.
“FBC is focused on being active in attracting French investors to invest in Georgia. One of the most important missions of FBC is to assist small and medium-sized businesses in opening the door to export to other countries,” the organization reports.
Today 40 various French and Georgian companies are represented as members of FBC.
5 draft projects formed by 3rd and 4th year students will be selected by FBC and CSB jointly. Each group should be formed of a maximum of 5 students from various specializations including marketing and international business. These students are on the eve of their entry in to the working world.
“There will be a ‘godfather system’, this means a group complex with famous businessmen who will make corrections, give suggestions to the participants of this project,” Tiko Gugberidze, CSB, told The FINANCIAL.
FBC and CSB have sufficiently good experience in their partnership. It is considered that this assignment will also justify its principal’s main purposes. “This project is not only to help students in becoming successful businessmen, but also to aid the development of import-export in Georgia,” Gilbert Hie declares.
According to Mr. Hie, such kinds of projects have existed in other countries for many years and this one should hopefully become as successful.
Antoine Bardon, the first Vice-President of FBC, CEO of sSaint-Michel, declared that “FBC will lend a hand to participants and they will be able to get technical assistance from local banks and lawyers in order to promote the project.”
This project is said to become a real company. The project is one of the main ways of developing the export-import business in Georgia.
”It will enrich economical ties. Such projects exist in practically every region of France,” says Joel Bastenaire, Advisor for Cooperation and Cultural Affairs of French Embassy in Georgia.
“It is always advantageous to have new businesses, new ideas of young people who are looking ahead to becoming valuable businessmen,” Bastenaire told The FINANCIAL.
“At the beginning of my career I had no financial resources to develop my business plans. This project is an outstrip for those who have ideas, but are out of pocket.”
“It is possible to provide a bank loan to newly-made companies, however concrete help from the members of FBC is available in case needed. It all depends on a project’s cogency,” Jean-Philippe Arvert, Director of CCI International Lorraine, said.
“The reason for starting this project in Georgia is the ongoing global financial crisis. Surely it has some other missions too, but it’s a fact that this project might have an influence on the country’s economy,” Tinatin Gugberidze, Director of Marketing and Public Relations Department CU, says.
FBC representatives say CSB is a strongpoint to rely on and they have faith in their professionalism.
“It is a pleasure to be a partner of CSB,” Mr. Hie stated.
Caucasus School of Business was the first educational institution to receive an International Quality Accreditation and has highly regarded Baccalaureate, Masters and PhD programmes in business.
CSB has recently announced the third intake of the innovative Dual MBA degree programme in cooperation with the Grenoble Graduate School of Business targeted at professionals with a proven track record of handling significant responsibilities in various types of organizations.
As Jean-Philippe Arvert admits, “The future plans of the project will depend on the project’s accomplishment. If the Georgian students are successful then its completely possible that this scheme will be repeated in 2009.”
Camille Marquette, Director of FBC, says, “This project is important to the success of business in the country and I think that it will become most flourishing and solid. I am sure that the value of this project is of high standards.”
“Students know that this is a chance to truly enter the business world and that this is on account of CSB and FBC’s voluntary cooperation,” one of the students attending the project’s presentation last week, told The FINANCIAL.
Written By Tako Khelaia
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