Hernando de Soto to Deliver Keynote Address at CIPE’s Democracy that Delivers for Entrepreneurs Conference
April 9-10, 2013

Pakistan – CIPE Pakistan Deputy Country Director Hammad Siddiqui was in Islamabad to meet with local representatives of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) to discuss follow-up plans for activities held during GEW 2012. It was agreed that CIPE will consider jointly hosting a conference of entrepreneurship teachers from across Pakistan to engage teachers in debates on how entrepreneurship education should be promoted in the country. During his visit to Islamabad, Siddiqui also met with the leadership of the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce to finalize plans for the next All-Pakistan Chamber Presidents’ Conference, scheduled for February 25-26. Currently, 22 chamber presidents have confirmed their participation.

Azerbaijan – The Entrepreneurship Development Foundation and the Baku Political Studies Program organized a three-day seminar outside of Baku for 35 Azerbaijani mid-career professionals to discuss the role of youth in promoting market-based economic reform. The purpose of the seminar was to encourage openness and knowledge-sharing amongst colleagues to build consensus on needed areas for reform. The seminar featured seven lectures by six different speakers, which included topics on the future of Azerbaijan’s economy, sustainability of extractive industries, and good governance structures, among others.

Azerbaijan – The Entrepreneurship Development Foundation, along with partnering organizations the Baku Education Information Center and the Baku Political Studies Program, held the first seminar in a 10-week-long course for two groups of 25 university-age Azerbaijani youth aimed to educate them on economic reforms and provide them with effective communications skills by using CIPE Development Institute materials and lectures. In the first seminar, participants watched a lecture given by Nobel Laureate Douglass North titled “Foundations for New Institutional Economics.”

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Nepal – Samriddhi, the Prosperity Foundation, in partnership with the World Bank and the organization Social Science Baha, conducted a policy roundtable on the issue of “Youth Migration and Entrepreneurship in Nepal.” Director of Social Science Baha Deepak Thapa presented the findings of a recent study on the topic, and Samriddhi, the Prosperity Foundation Executive Director Robin Sitoula moderated the program. The event was attended by 35 people including bankers, entrepreneurs in the IT and agribusiness sectors, representatives of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and government officials. The participants formulated policy recommendations to reduce the outward migration of young people from Nepal through fostering entrepreneurship. In addition, Samriddhi, the Prosperity Foundation and Sagarmatha FM aired an episode of the radio program on entrepreneurship, examining the issue of access to credit for small-scale and new entrepreneurs.

Afghanistan – CIPE conducted the final round of the business proposal writing competition under the Tashabos youth entrepreneurship course. During the school year, CIPE conducts competitions at each high school participating in the program and selects winners to go on to the final round. The ten finalists, representing Bamyan, Kabul, and Nangarhar provinces, competed in Kabul before a three-person panel from the Mesbah Educational Institute. The audience included teachers and the principals of the students’ schools, and the head of the Ministry of Education’s Curriculum Development Department.

Azerbaijan – The Entrepreneurship Development Foundation, along with partnering organizations the Baku Education Information Center and the Baku Political Studies Program, finalized the selection of 25 university-age Azeri youth to participate in a series of seminars aimed to educate them on economic reforms and provide them with communications skills. The seminars series began on December 22.

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Azerbaijan – On May 1, Azerbaijan’s Entrepreneurship Development Foundation held a conference in Baku entitled “Roadmap for Developing Small Entrepreneurship.” The conference explored the legal and regulatory barriers facing small businesses in Azerbaijan, and the policy alternatives that could be developed to address them. The 55 participants and speakers included representatives from Parliament, government, think tanks, and business. CIPE Regional Director Andrew Wilson travelled to Baku to speak at the event, and to conduct meetings with local business, policy, and youth groups to explore the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs.

Russia – The Vladikavkaz Institute of Management (VIM), a CIPE partner, on April 28 awarded certificates to 19 students who completed a six-week course designed to give local youth the skills needed to launch a business and fully participate in local democratic institutions. As part of the certificate program, students drafted business plans for business start-ups, the most viable of which will be presented by VIM to the regional economic development authority for possible funding. The start-up ideas range from launching a kindergarten to opening a soccer training facility. The students, ranging in age from 18 to 24, are the fifth group to complete the youth entrepreneurship training program funded under a grant from the National Endowment for Democracy.

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Pakistan – This week CIPE and the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry conducted a youth conference on “Inspiring the New Wave of Entrepreneurship.” Over 350 youth participated in the conference where they discussed issues including women’s entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, and building bridges through business-Diaspora linkages. Secretary of State Clinton attended the conference and her remarks can be seen at http://still4hill.com/2012/03/27/video-secretary-clintons-remarks-to-young-entrepreneurs-pakistan

Peru – At the conclusion of EmprendeAhora 2012, Instituto Invertir selected the winner of its democracy video contest. The contest gave participants in the EmprendeAhora program a way to demonstrate what they have learned about democracy and explain in their own way the implications of democracy on society. The winners of the contest hailed from Huancayo, in Junin region. Their winning video can be viewed (in Spanish) at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikmL4w80eAY.

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Russia – Eight graduates of a CIPE-administered youth entrepreneurship training program were awarded certificates on October 21 entitling them to low-interest loans to start businesses. The loans, each up to $4,000 in value, are intended to help finance start-up businesses that range from a beauty parlor to a travel agency to a bakery. The loans are provided by a government entity, the Committee for Youth Affairs of the Republic of Adygea. The Committee for Youth Affairs awarded the loans on the basis of recommendations from CIPE’s local partner, the Adygea Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The U.S. Agency for International Development is funding the three-year program, which covers six regions in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus area.

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Updates from Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Russia, and Paraguay…

Afghanistan – CIPE conducted a survey of students who have completed all three years of CIPE’s Tashabos high school entrepreneurship course. Of the 6,000 graduates, 1,362 have set up their own small business, 204 have revived a family business, and 350 have helped expand an existing family business. In total, the students have created 7,336 jobs.

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Paraguay – The Paraguayan Foundation for Cooperation and Development (FP) awarded the winners of its contest called, “El Supervisor Emprendedor” (The Supervisor-Entrepreneur), a contest that sought to encourage and reward the spirit of entrepreneurship in education, especially in rural areas. The winning team created a website that has already begun to serve to improve communication among educators and supervisors in more than 100 urban and rural schools, creating a resource that is being used to aid the schools’ communities, and the population at large. This event was featured in national and local media, including print and online newspapers such as ABC, La Nación, and Paraguay al Instante, as well as on local radio stations.

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