A SURPRISE ENTRY in the Budget announcements last month was the announcement of $3.6 million (over four years) to be spent "investing in social entrepreneurs". This scheme has been championed by Social Services and Employment Minister Steve Maharey (left), and will be managed by the Community Employment Group (CEG).

CEG General Manager Charlie Moore says that the basic philosophy is to identify key "movers and shakers" in the community sector and give them the opportunity to stand aside from their work for a period of time for study, research, or to meet with other social entrepreneurs and their projects.

Moore: "We want to give them the chance to feed themselves, a bit like a sabbatical really. And we want to do some investing in the next generation of community development practitioners ..."

The parameters of the scheme are still being worked out by CEG, and we can expect a formal announcement on details in the next few weeks.

At this stage, the scheme is expected to support about 15-20 applications, and will involve up to a year of support for the social entrepreneur. Community organisations will be invited to apply on behalf of their social entrepreneur. CEG will provide up to $10,000 for study and research costs, and up to $35,000 will go to the community organisation to cover the costs of "back-filling" the social entrepreneur's position while they are on the scheme.

CEG expects to bring together a community panel to advise on the final selection of participants.

Sources —Employment Matters "Budget update" May 2001; interviews by vivian Hutchinson with Charlie Moore and CEG administration officers 18 June 2001