DIC Peren briefs 25 participants on startups and support

By Daniel Okafor

Twenty-five participants attended the District Industries Centre (DIC), Peren, startup programme on 26 October 2026, according to the centre. The venue was Town Hall, Peren. The session lasted one day. It covered startups and entrepreneurship. DIC Peren said the objective was to promote entrepreneurial awareness and encourage aspiring entrepreneurs to explore business opportunities and avail themselves of government support schemes.

A Project Associate under the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) initiative, DIC Peren, chaired the programme.

What did the speakers cover?

General Manager Kughato Sema delivered the welcome address. He tied startups and entrepreneurship to economic growth and employment generation. He also outlined the programme's objectives. Sema described the department's vision for fostering entrepreneurship and economic development in the district.

Functional Manager Namzilung Pamai spoke on government funding opportunities and schemes. Her session covered the support available to aspiring entrepreneurs as they establish and develop businesses, DIC Peren said. The centre presented access to public schemes as a central part of its startup outreach.

Functional Manager Teizung Zeliang led a separate session on mentorship. He highlighted mentorship's role in entrepreneurship and shared insights on starting, developing and expanding businesses through various entrepreneurship initiatives.

The release presented the programme as a mix of policy direction, funding information and business-building guidance. It described no particular scheme, funding amount or application process. Attendees learned about routes into government support without receiving a funding decision.

Why did mentorship share the agenda with funding?

DIC Peren ran two practical sessions around a common goal: helping aspiring entrepreneurs establish and develop their businesses. Pamai addressed the schemes that can support that work. Zeliang addressed the guidance needed to start, develop and expand a venture.

Sema framed startups as contributors to economic growth and jobs. That context linked the district's economic priorities to the sessions on funding and business development. The order of the programme moved from district goals to public finance and then to hands-on entrepreneurship guidance.

The programme functioned like an orientation rather than a grant award. It introduced support channels and mentorship, but it announced no money, application deadline or beneficiary selection.

For Peren's business community, that distinction matters. A one-day awareness session can widen awareness of public schemes and sharpen a founder's next steps, while a grant award would require a named amount and a formal application route. The release did not report either.

How many people took part?

Twenty-five participants from different wards of Peren Town attended. DIC Peren said the initiative aimed to enhance awareness of startup opportunities, encourage entrepreneurial ventures and strengthen the local business ecosystem in the district.

The centre disclosed no breakdown by ward, business stage, gender or age. It did not report whether the audience consisted mainly of first-time founders or existing business owners. The attendance total confirms turnout but leaves the composition of the group unknown.

The announcement recorded no participant questions, business plans or immediate funding applications. DIC Peren announced no follow-up workshop, new registration route or deadline for a next phase of the programme. It also disclosed no mentor assignments or promised business-development support.

Attendance therefore measured turnout at Town Hall rather than any commercial result. The centre offered information and guidance. It left the conversion of those inputs into ventures unmeasured.

What does the programme need next?

The chair's role came from the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) initiative, as DIC Peren described it. The release named no RAMP beneficiary target, budget or timetable for Peren. It also gave no details about the RAMP scheme's application criteria.

For aspiring entrepreneurs, the practical offer was access to information about government schemes and mentorship from three named officials. That is a narrower outcome than a funding package, because no scheme name, award amount, eligibility rule or selection process accompanied the event.

The next measure for DIC Peren is whether the 25 participants use the information to launch ventures, apply for support or expand existing businesses. The release gives no basis yet to judge that conversion. It establishes awareness as the programme's first result, and it leaves entrepreneurs in Peren to act on it.