Rizwan Haider

ISLAMABAD

The 50 hour training of trainers workshop supported by USAID ended on a high on Sunday with 40 participants from diverse higher education institutes from Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan region being awarded “Youth Social Entrepreneurship “ certificate, having completed their seven days of training.
The training was organized by YES Network Pakistan under ‘Advancing Youth Social Entrepreneurship in Higher Education’ project funded by USAID’s Small Grants & Ambassador’s Fund Program. The workshop infused a new spirit among the participants to bring a positive change in the country by training and engaging young people in
the field of social entrepreneurship. Speaking at the occasion, Ali Raza Khan, CEO YES Network Pakistan said, “This was the first time that representatives from higher education institutes from Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan had come together to learn about youth social entrepreneurship. I could see the workshop really opening their eyes to the need for unleashing the entrepreneurial talents of youth to become change makers and innovators, something that seems virtually absent in their institutions. There was so much enthusiasm, energy and a hunger for change.” A key feature of the training was that it was experiential means learning through the process of being a participant on the course. Participants had spent one day in the field to apply gained knowledge and skills. All the participants developed a social enterprise plan while working in the field to address a local problem by following both earned and unearned strategies.