Problem Statement 5:

Pakistan is a society of employees. The education and social system does not encourage entrepreneurship as a preferred career option amongst the youth.

Analysis
Entrepreneurship is usually undertaken by those belonging to the existing business families. As a result the economy witnesses a small number of new enterprises being created and that too in traditional areas of business overcrowding the supply/product base and their markets. Entrepreneurial culture is being promoted by SMEs and in return entrepreneurial ship is boosting employment, GDP and income. Todays world contains an estimated 1.2 billion young people aged between 15 and 24 years (an increase of 17% compared to 1995), that is 24.7% of the worlds working-age population. (ILO, 2008, ILO, 2008). About 87% of them live in developing economies (UN, 2007)1. As the youth population grew faster than both the total population and youth employment, the share of the youth who are employed in the youth population declined from 49.2 to 44.5% between 1997 and 2007 and the total number of unemployed increased from 63 million to 71 million between 1997 and 2007, in particular in sub-Saharan Africa (from 8 to 10 million) (ILO, 2008)2. Youth employment has grown in prominence on national and global development agendas. The youth employment challenge has its own dimensions and confronts countries worldwide regardless of their stage of socio-economic development. On the other hand, there are no limitations in the entrepreneurial capabilities. If, this entrepreneurial potential can be unleashed, by providing level playing field, information, awareness and support in establishing enterprises Pakistan can witness fast paced growth in establishment of new enterprises creating new employment opportunities, improving distribution of wealth and exploiting the opportunities offered by international markets in the liberalized WTO regime. The past Government programs to encourage entrepreneurship such as Self Employment Scheme, Youth Investment Promotion Society and Yellow Cab Scheme were limited and not too comprehensively designed and thus achieved little in promoting entrepreneurship amongst the educated Pakistani youth. There is a need for Govt. to actively
1 2

ILO (2008), Global Employment Trends for Youth, ILO, Geneva. ILO (2008), Global Employment Trends, ILO, Geneva.

promote entrepreneurship through changes in education curricula, by creating awareness amongst youth and by providing effective support to those who wish to establish new enterprises. Revision in primary and higher education curricula for promoting entrepreneurship amongst the educated youth inclusion of entrepreneurship courses in (all professional degree awarding) higher education, technical and vocational training institutions in Pakistan entrepreneurship Competitions at university level to culminate in Annual Entrepreneurship Competition at National level for selecting best business plans/models and providing grant for project implementation Establishment of technology and business incubators in selected universities in Pakistan Identification of investment opportunities offered by backward and forward linkages of successful services/products. Many international surveys rank Pakistan was one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Entrepreneurs are cautioned. Although it has strong potential to be an entrepreneurial nation, there are certain problems that prevent it from being so. The first is the entrepreneurs effort to become wealthy overnight, without having to move up the ladder gradually. This overconfidence and lack of understanding for proper business techniques causes the demise of many entrepreneurial ventures.

The second issue that is preventing entrepreneurial growth in Pakistan is that the women are not given the opportunity to start a venture and nurture it into a successful business. Women are looked as the food-makers rather than the food-earners. However, research does show that those women who have been given the chance and the proper resources have worked to become strong entrepreneurs. As an increasing number of women are fighting for their rights to enter into the business world, entrepreneurship amongst women is giving rise to some excellent business ventures. Encouraging entrepreneurship is a key to creating jobs, improving competitiveness, boosting exports, fostering economic growth and reducing poverty. In any such endeavor, education and training play a vital role. Training programs, which define entrepreneurship as a basic skill, must stress the importance of developing an entrepreneurial spirit among Pakistani citizens.

Projects on the development and implementation of entrepreneurship training curricula should be chalked out, including entrepreneurship amongst women and management capacity building. An education toolkit on private equity financing and venture capital should also be developed. Difficulties experienced in starting up an enterprise can clearly act as a direct brake on entrepreneurship. Policy makers therefore need to place considerable emphasis on improving start-up procedures. A best procedure benchmarking exercise should be carried out, establishing a clear mapping of federal and provincial procedures and identifying illustrative cases of best practice, with the aim of reducing delays. SMEs must be considered as a main driver for innovation, employment, poverty reduction and social integration. The best possible environment for SMEs and entrepreneurship needs therefore to be created. In order to gain a better understanding of the real economic position of small and medium-sized enterprises and to remove from that category groups of enterprises whose economic power may exceed that of genuine SMEs, policy makers need to make a distinction between various types of enterprises, depending on whether they have holdings which do not confer a controlling position (partner enterprises), or whether they are linked to other enterprises. The case of Shell LiveWIRE International 3(Kenyon 2008) Shell LiveWIRE was initiated in Glasgow, United Kingdom, in 1982, as a programme to encourage the young to develop their own businesses. Today, it is a global community initiative which considers self-employment as a viable and desirable career option. The programme is active in 25 countries across the globe, including: Argentina, Brunei Darussalam, China, Hungary, Ireland, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Mauritius, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Romania, Singapore, South Africa and Sri Lanka. LiveWIRE involves a combination of information, training, counseling and mentorship for over one million young people annually. Each national programme receives significant support from the Shell oil company and a range of corporate sponsors, often combined with government assistance. Since 2000, over four million young people have been in contact with the LiveWIRE programme. Currently, one million young people are in touch with the programme each year worldwide and 200 000 young people undertake some form of training.

Kenyon, 2008 article 8 issue 2

Results may vary across countries. Specific stocktaking for the United Kingdom indicates that, since 1982, 600 000 young people have explored the idea of starting their own business; approximately 16% of all enquiries led to a business start-up; as a result, three to four jobs are created by each business start-up; and 65% of new start-ups are still trading four years later. A similar exercise carried out in Oman showed that the Intilaaqah Oman programme currently trains and supports over 5,500 young people each year. 37% of participants over the last 12 years still run an enterprise, and nearly all the remaining participants are in private or public sector employment or further studies. In Oman, 54% of participants are young women, which show the gender sensitiveness of the programme. 95% of Intilaaqah-supported businesses are in the formal sector, and most generate an income far greater than what is possible in the public sector. Societies that appreciate entrepreneurship, and thus promote its values and norms, can create a dynamic and vibrant class of young entrepreneurs. Empirical evidence shows that educating young minds in enterprising behavior and boosting their confidence for calculated risk-taking, increases the incidence of entrepreneurship being adopted as a career option. The successful development of youth business hinges upon good access to well-integrated services such as management training, business mentoring programmes, financial services, support in gaining access markets and networking opportunities. Enhancing their capacity in association building and policy advocacy can address this disadvantaged position. Young women entrepreneurs face additional hurdles, as in many cultures they are influenced to be even more risk averse, while their roles in the family and society keep them from tapping opportunities in business development. This also means that they are more likely to be in the informal economy and less likely to be entrepreneurs employing others. Problem Statement Conclusion:
The energy, skills and aspirations of young people are invaluable assets that no country can afford to squander. Helping young people to realize their full potential by gaining access to productive employment and decent work is, therefore, a pre-condition for poverty eradication, sustainable development and lasting peace. Youth employment programmes can provide useful support to young people who are facing specific barriers in the labor market. Their underutilization has economic and psychological costs and may cause social conflict. Nevertheless, youth programmes have to be designed with caution to avoid crowding-out effects on other groups of workers.