Malik Yoba – actor, real estate developer and global advocate for community empowerment – brought some inspiring words to the Sandals Grande Resort on Tuesday as the keynote speaker at Connect Saint Lucia’s Business Social.
During the event – which united startups, young entrepreneurs and leaders from the public and private sectors, all eager to harness collaboration and innovation for the island’s future – he also made a promise to invest in the business of local innovator Amanda Alexander, who crafts feminine products from banana fibre.
After he was introduced on Tuesday, Yoba took the microphone and moved through the audience singing Bob Marley’s Africa Unite. The American actor’s presentation, which was very interactive, blended entrepreneurship, purpose and technology.
“The 80/20 rule that I talked about in Why Did I Get Married is not just in relationships of love, but it is what happens in the journey of entrepreneurship,” Yoba said.
“When you take a thought and turn it into a thing, your heart will be broken, people will betray you. But if you are committed to what I believe is our divine right for abundance as a people globally, and you get on that train and you get on that mission, you meet people or you hear about people like this woman right here.”
He was referring to Alexander, pledging: “I’m going to partner with her and I’m saying that in front of ya’ll, please, you got my word and my word is my bond, and I will do everything I can to support you.”
Standing in the midst of those present, Yoba added: “You cannot build a strong country and economy unless people have the audacity to dream the impossible at ridiculous levels and say, regardless of how hard it seems, ‘I’m going to move in the direction of my divinely appointed seed’.
“The first real estate we own is in our minds, and we used to be the real estate and so for many of us those are conflicting thoughts, because the vestiges of colonisation don’t allow us always to believe that the impossible is possible and with Google, God and ChatGPT we have no excuses.”
Connect Saint Lucia is founded by Lance Growth, who told St Lucia Times that as a Saint Lucian educated in the United States, he felt it was important to come back home to share his knowledge and experience.
“I am just trying to get people connected, trying to promote especially the young businesses and just trying to get the country a little more visible and telling stories,” he explained.
The real estate tax attorney says he and Yoba, a real estate developer, first crossed paths years ago at an event in New York.
Yoba said that he was in Saint Lucia to support his “brother” Lance and also to learn, partner and act as an ambassador.
He said he wanted to let the rest of the world know that there are opportunities on the island, and there are ways for everyone to connect.
Tuesday’s event was supported by several partners. They include Sandals Grande, Cocoa Palm Resort, The Landings, Unicomer, Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, Invest Saint Lucia, SLASPA, Nationwide Construction, First Citizens Bank, Coco Palm Resort, Youth Economy Agency, DD Auto Imports and St Lucia Distillers.
