Guyanese entrepreneur to join President Obama in Peru following successful YLAI trip

Nov 14, 2016 News

Given her successful participation of the 2016 Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) in the United States, Guyanese entrepreneur Abigail Loncke has been selected among the few finalists to meet with President Barrack Obama, in Peru for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit.
Loncke is the founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Community Health Care, an agency which delivers home care needs for the elderly, sick, disabled, and children in the comfort of their homes.
The agency also helps to train women, who are in need of employment and second chances offering them work as care-givers.
Earlier this year, the young CEO was among four Guyanese chosen to represent the nation at the YLAI. The YLAI brought together 250 young leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean, Guyana and the United States for an exchange programme that involves internship and skills-building workshops.
A commitment made by President Obama to empower young people around the world and ensure they have the tools, skills, and networks to tackle shared global challenges.

Guyanese entrepreneur Abigail Loncke is selected to meet with President Barrack Obama, in Peru for the APEC Summit.

At the conclusion of the five week programme, Loncke was amongst 21 finalists to participate in the YLAI pitch competition where she showcased some of her entrepreneurial skills.
During a recent interview with Kaieteur News, Loncke spoke of her YLAI experience and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to represent Guyana and showcase her skills.
“It was tough… 21 finalists… I was the only person to represent Guyana… I was able to showcase my cause, Guyana and what we have to offer.”
“I didn’t win the competition but I’m heading to Peru on Wednesday to meet President Obama. There’s the APEC summit from the 17-19 and so a few participants were invited to go meet him as he wasn’t able to see us due to election commitments. I leave Wednesday and come back Sunday. I’m excited about that!” she added.
Loncke plans to use her skills to further train single-parent women and young women to care for the elderly.
“I also want to create a volunteer group that would care for the elderly folks who can’t afford, it but need help at home.”
The YLAI programme commenced on October 5 in Dallas and culminated with a summit in Washington, D.C. in early November.
Over the five weeks, participants shared their experiences in start-ups, small businesses, non-governmental organisations, and similar entities in cities throughout the United States and in partnership with community groups and American universities. The participants further developed their business or social venture plans through an entrepreneurship curriculum and workshops, and by working alongside their American counterparts.
The YLAI initiative was launched to build linkages between young leaders across the hemisphere and to expand opportunities for emerging entrepreneurs and civil society leaders.
Nearly 4,000 applications were received for the 2016 leg of the programme. Some 250 business and social entrepreneurs were selected, representing 35 countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
The candidates were successful, having demonstrated “the energy of this generation to build stronger, more prosperous and more secure communities throughout the hemisphere.
Their areas of interest included agriculture, clean energy, consulting, e-commerce, education, entrepreneurship development and support, food and beverage, food security, health care, hospitality, LGBTI rights, marketing and branding, mobile applications, and women and youth empowerment.