Far North Queensland youth get entrepreneurial kickstart

Far North Queensland young people will learn to build their own tablets, design games and pitch a startup idea at Queensland Government-funded workshops this week.

And at the front of the classroom sharing his tech know-how will be 16-year-old entrepreneur Taj Pabari.

Innovation Minister Leeanne Enoch said the Queensland Government’s Advance Queensland Young Starters Fund provided $19,500 funding to facilitate the workshops.

“We have some brilliant young minds in Queensland just like Taj and we need to ensure they have the opportunity to learn and become our next generation of entrepreneurs,” Ms Enoch said.

“The workshops will be delivered by Taj’s educational startup Fiftysix Creations and will help young people develop skills to be future entrepreneurs.

“No matter where they are located in Queensland it is imperative our young people have access to real-world advice and knowledge from experienced business people and startups.”

Member for Mulgrave, Treasurer and Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships Curtis Pitt said workshops will be held in Yarrabah and around the Cairns region.

“The mobile nature of these workshops mean we have been able to offer them to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in their own communities,” Mr Pitt said.

“Creating opportunities for young Queenslanders to gain new skills and participate in the digital economy is a priority for the Palaszczuk Government.”

Fiftysix Creations’ Chief Executive Taj Pabari said the workshops would provide young people with an insight into the world of STEM, computer science and entrepreneurship – something that wasn’t always available in regional areas.

“For me, I'm extremely motivated to get as many young people learning and building with our Fiftysix One Tablets - young people who may not necessarily have the means to learn like we do in our cities.”

Taj said workshop participants will start with putting together their own tablet computer.

“It’s as easy as a puzzle and as fun as a computer game,” he said.

“They’ll have the opportunity to code a game and pitch their idea to potentially start their own business or social change project.”

Seven workshops are planned for Far North Queensland with the series kicking off in Yarrabah today and running in locations around the Cairns region until Thursday, 7 April 2016.

The Advance Queensland Young Starters Fund supports organisations to build entrepreneurial skills in young Queenslanders across the state. 

Find out more about Advance Queensland Young Starters Fund at the Advance Queensland website.

Media contact: Daniel Lato 0438 830 201

Fifty Six Creations contact: Taj Pabari, CEO 0452 277 035 or Isuru Wanasinghe, CCO 0433 574 679.