Young entrepreneurs offered seed money, mentorship

KARACHI: 

In a development that would help entrepreneurs convert their ideas into successful business models – without worrying about funding, the National Entrepreneurship Working Group (NEW-G) and INJAZ Pakistan inaugurated a programme titled Business Startup Launch (BSL) at Aman Foundation’s head office on Wednesday.

BSL is a platform for startups, seeking angel investors for further expansion and young entrepreneurs who have progressive business ideas but face a dearth of funds.

Unlike most incubators, the platform is open to a variety of businesses and not just internet-based startups. In fact, half the teams that competed in the inaugural edition were running conventional businesses.

Once shortlisted for the BSL, the participants are allowed to pitch for funding, guidance and mentorships before a panel of judges – the most shortlisted participants or finalists are then eligible for a grant worth Rs1 million and 24 weeks of mentorship.

“Entrepreneurship is the biggest agent for economic progress, which is why NEW-G is working on Pakistan’s entrepreneurship ecosystem,” NEW-G President Rizwan Razvi told the audience in the inaugural speech.

Razvi said there was no infrastructure in the country for startup capital, making it difficult for entrepreneurs to execute their business plans. “Having a brilliant idea is one thing but converting it into a successful business model is the biggest challenge for any entrepreneur.”

These participants have made it to this round and the funding is available to them but they really have to earn it, Razvi said.

All the participating teams were instructed to sell their respective business plans to convince the judges and angel investors to justify why and how their project would be a success.

“For the first-ever edition, we received 10 applications,” said Faizan Rafi Hashmi, Academic Coordinator of INJAZ Pakistan – an initiative and incubate of Aman Foundation.

After assessing their executive summaries, the organisers shortlisted seven teams for the elevator pitch round, in which the participants had to pitch their projects before judges and angel investors.

The first edition saw a very interactive session as each of the six presentations – as the seventh team withdrew – was followed by questions from investors and judges, testing the participants’ ability to defend their projects.

During the first edition, contestants belonging to various business sectors – laptop retailer based in Sajawal and Badin, Quail farmer based between Karachi and DG Khan, MBA students from LUMS and civil engineers from NED University – compete for a common goal.

However, only four of these six teams will be selected by the judges and these will be further shortlisted to two finalists, according to Hashmi, who will be eligible for funding and training.

“After completing the mentorship programme, the finalists will work as independent entities,” he said.

Giving details about the focus of the programmes, NEW-G President Razvi said they would work to identify weaknesses and strengths of the country’s entrepreneurship ecosystem in the next couple of years. They also plan to create a director and a web portal for entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneur’s education, regulatory framework, access to finance, women entrepreneurship and overcoming barriers to entrepreneurship are some of the areas they would focus, Razvi said.

Ibrahimovic: I'll retire at PSG in 2016

The Sweden international says that he cannot see himself playing beyond the age of 34, while insisting he is not the pillar holding Laurent Blanc's team together

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has revealed his intention to retire from professional football when his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expires in 2016.

The 32-year-old forward arrived at Parc des Princes from AC Milan in 2012 and has starred in successive Ligue 1 title triumphs for les Parisiens, although Champions League success continues to elude him.

Having dismissed suggestions earlier this month that he wants to return to Juventus before he retires, the Sweden international has now claimed that he will finish his career at the Parc des Princes.

"I have a contract until 2016," Ibrahimovic told ESPN. "I will be 34 next season and I don't see myself continuing to play at the top level after that.

"So yes, I will probably retire at PSG."

Ibrahimovic's match-winning performances in the French capital have led some to claim les Parisiens would be nowhere near as strong without him, but he insists that PSG are no one-man team.

"I don't feel like I am PSG at all," he added. "I would be nothing without the team and my team-mates. 

"I am playing with very good players, players who respect me. I respect them. Respect is a very important notion for me.

"You can't do well if there is no respect. We work hard every day to reach the same goals and objectives. Everything comes with hard work.

"I am one of the leaders, but there are a few. We have a good group here. We have a great atmosphere in the dressing room. We never had any problems.

"It is a funny dressing room. Everybody likes to have a laugh and take the p*ss out of each other, so it's good. I like it."

Rami: I only wanted to join AC Milan

The French defender, who was on loan at San Siro from Valencia last season, says he feels as though he has joined "a family" in Italy

Adil Rami has insisted that AC Milan were the only club he wanted to join this summer.

The 28-year-old joined Milan on loan in January following a falling-out with Valencia, and immediately became a regular at the heart of the defence during his six-month spell, making 18 appearances and scoring 3 times in Serie A. 

He made the switch permanent in July, joining Milan coach Filippo Inzaghi's new regime for a reported fee of €4.25 million.

Speaking to Calcio 2000, Rami claims he had no hesitation over returning to the "family" at San Siro.

"I had problems with Valencia and I heard that Milan were looking for a defender," said the Frenchman.

"I didn't know about any other clubs that may have been interested. For me, I just wanted to sign for Milan – and that's what happened.

"[Philippe] Mexes helped me in the early days, but I have to say that everyone has been really helpful.

"I found more than just a team here – it's a family."

Milan play Lazio at San Siro in their first Serie A fixture of 2014-15 on August 31.

Premier League better off without Luis Suarez

The controversial striker left Liverpool to join Barcelona earlier this summer and the division's chief executive Richard Scudamore is glad to see the back of him

Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore feels that the English top flight will be better off withoutLuis Suarez after his move from Liverpool to Barcelona.

The PFA Player of the Season scored 31 goals as the Reds finished second in 2013-14 but caused controversy while at the World Cup by biting Giorgio Chiellini, his third such incident, which led to a ban from all footballing activity until the end of October.

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Suarez had previously bitten opponents while at both Ajax and Liverpool, as well as once being suspended for racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra, and Scudamore says that he was "an accident waiting to happen".

"I think probably the time had come [for Suarez to go]," he told the press. "He's a great player and I'm not taking anything away from his talents - he was voted by both his own players and the media last year the player of the year and deservedly so.

"He's great to have but an accident waiting to happen and, if you spend your time trying to promote what's good about the Premier League, you're always waiting for the next thing to come along.

"And this one in the summer, although it was with Uruguay, although it didn't directly involve the Premier League, clearly it reflected on Liverpool as one of our great clubs and it reflected on us.

"He's done his time here but I can't say I'm sorry to see him go. I think it was good business on a number of levels from Liverpool to move Suarez on."

Having appealed his four-month Fifa ban, Suarez's fate will be decided by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Thursday

Swiss mission promises help to enhance exports

KARACHI: 

Consul General of Switzerland in Karachi Emil Wyss has promised assistance to Karachi business community to enhance exports to Switzerland.

While talking to the industrialists of Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI) – one of the leading town associations – he said Korangi Industrial Area is one of the most important areas in town with huge potential. It could contribute immensely in creating links between Swiss and Pakistani businessmen. “There are vast opportunities in Swiss market for Pakistani manufacturers of leather goods, and marble and onyx items. Cooperation between the two countries is attainable, including the outsourcing of pharmaceutical industries to Pakistani firms.”

Talking over the security situation in the city, he said Karachi was a safe place for foreigners, and most of them are not well acquainted with the law and order situation of the city. “We need to paint a true picture of the city instead of just relying on speculations.”

KATI President Syed Farukh Mazhar, in his welcome address, urged the Swiss stakeholders to invest more in Karachi. He said the volume of Pakistan’s exports to Switzerland is very small while the balance of trade also favours Switzerland.

He extended his invitation to Swiss companies to visit Pakistan and observe the security situation themselves, and also avail benefits of cheap raw material and labour. He also informed that a delegation of Pakistani businessmen will visit Switzerland to bring investment and impart knowledge about our industry.

KATI’s Standing Committee of Diplomatic Affairs Chairman Masood Naqi stressed on joint ventures to promote business and liaise with the Chamber of Commerce of Switzerland.

Erdogan prepares for Turkish presidency after historic poll triumph

ISTANBUL: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday prepared to take Turkey to a promised “new era” when he assumes the presidency in just over two weeks, after vanquishing his election rivals in a historic poll victory.

Erdogan vowed to build a “new Turkey” and reconcile a divided country as he took to the balcony of his party headquarters in Ankara to give a triumphant midnight speech before tens of thousands of supporters.

But analysts have warned both he and Turkey may face turbulent times ahead as he prepares to beef up the powers of the president, which in recent years has been a largely ceremonial role.

Erdogan has served as premier since 2003, a period in which he has sought to modernise Turkey and take a more assertive position on the international stage. He could now serve two five year presidential terms, staying in power until 2024.

Sunday’s polls were the first direct presidential elections in Turkish history – previously the head of state was chosen by parliament– and Erdogan has said he will be a “people’s president.”

“The Turkish people wrote history yesterday,” declared the pro-Erdogan daily Sabah, with a picture of Erdogan giving the balcony speech with his hand clasped to his heart.

He will be inaugurated as president on August 28 and attention now will turn to who becomes the next prime minister to take the ruling religion-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) into 2015 legislative elections.

Also closely watched will be the future of outgoing president Abdullah Gul, a co-founder of the AKP with Erdogan, who has taken a distance from the premier and is keeping his future plans tightly under wraps.

In the end, Erdogan’s victory was not the processional landslide many predicted but he still managed with a comfortable cushion to avoid the need for a second round against the main opposition challenger Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu.

Erdogan won 51.74 percent of the vote, Ihsanoglu 38.46 percent and the third candidate, Kurdish challenger Selahattin Demirtas 9.80 percent, according to results based on a near total vote count.

Turnout was 73.68 percent, a figure that would be considered high in many countries but was sharply down on the 89 percent turnout recorded in Turkey’s local elections in March.

Critics complained that the campaign had been strongly slanted in favour of Erdogan, whose advertising dominated television and billboards for days in the run-up to the polls.

“Erdogan has become the first president directly elected by the people, after an unfair election process,” said the strongly secular Cumhuriyet daily.

Thousands of Turks took to the streets of Istanbul hooting the horns of their cars and waving Turkish flags to celebrate the victory of Erdogan while fireworks exploded in the skies above Ankara in celebration.

In his speech from the balcony of AKP headquarters – already a tradition after Erdogan election victories – he sought to promote a message of reconciliation after a sometimes bitter election campaign.

“Today we are closing an era and taking the first step for a new era,” Erdogan said in his victory speech.

Promising a new process of social reconciliation, he added: “We may have different political views, different lifestyles, sects, values, ethnic roots… but we are all sons of this country… each of us are the owner of this state.”

During his first term as president, Erdogan will mark being in power longer than Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who founded the modern Turkish state in 1923 and is still hailed as the country’s national hero.

Erdogan clearly has his eye on going down in history as a transformative figure like Ataturk, planning eye-poppingly ambitious infrastructure projects including a new canal for ships in Istanbul, a third airport in the city and a high speed rail network for the entire country.

Yet many secular Turks bitterly resent his rule and accuse Erdogan of squandering Ataturk’s legacy with a gradual move to religion and impose one-man rule.

Their anger erupted to the surface in deadly 2013 protests sparked by plans to build a shopping mall on the site of Gezi Park in central Istanbul. There was no reported unrest on election night.

In his victory speech, Erdogan called on opponents who label him a “dictator” to question themselves instead of criticising him.

He has promised to be a strongman president but this will prove tricky within the limits of the current constitution and the AKP has vowed to move to seek a new basic law after the 2015 polls.

Beyond that, Erdogan faces other tough challenges before him.

The economy, whose success is the foundation of his political popularity, has begun to show weakness over the last months.

“Winning the presidency has never been the main challenge for Erdogan. The main challenge… is what happens next,” said Ziya Meral, a researcher on Turkey at the University of Cambridge and Foreign Policy Centre in London

Second British Foreign Office minister quits

LONDON: Britain’s Africa minister Mark Simmonds resigned on Monday, barely a week after another UK Foreign Office minister quit over the government’s policy on Gaza.

Officials insisted that Simmonds’ decision was unrelated to that of Sayeeda Warsi, who quit last Tuesday in protest at the government’s failure to take a tougher line against Israel over its assault on Gaza.

Simmonds had decided “some weeks ago” to leave but agreed to stay to chair a UN meeting on the Democratic Republic of Congo last Thursday, a spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron’s Downing Street office said.

In his resignation letter, Simmonds said he was “exceptionally proud” of the government’s achievements but said he wanted to spend more time with his family, and will be leaving parliament at the general election next year.

“There’s nothing suspicious about this resignation — there’s no difference between myself and the government on policy,” the outgoing minister later told the BBC.

Despite the apparently amicable nature of his departure, it will be seen as a blow for the Foreign Office as it adapts to an overhaul of ministerial staff at a time of numerous international crises.

Philip Hammond replaced William Hague as foreign secretary — the top job — in a reshuffle last month, which also saw Middle East minister Hugh Robertson replaced.

Of the seven ministers now at the Foreign Office, four have been in their post less than a month.

In her resignation letter last week, Warsi praised Hague but said there was “great unease across the Foreign Office, amongst both ministers and senior officials, in the way recent decisions are being made”.

The peer, Britain’s first Muslim cabinet member who also had responsibility for faith and communities, said the government’s policy on Gaza was “morally indefensible”.

In an ITV news interview on Monday, Hammond stressed the two resignations were entirely different.

“Mark Simmonds agreed with the prime minister at the time of the reshuffle that he wanted to stand down — he wants to stand down from parliament at the next election,” he said.

“Baroness Warsi’s departure is in a different category altogether.”

Simmonds has been Conservative member of parliament for Boston and Skegness in eastern England since 2001 and was appointed to the Foreign Office in September 2012.

He had responsibility for Africa, Britain’s overseas territories, the Caribbean, as well as climate change and international energy.

His replacement is James Duddridge, a Conservative MP and party whip who previously served on the House of Commons international development committee.