The Small and Medium Enterprises(SME) Business Support Fund (BSF), in collaboration with Khushhali Bank Limited, plans to build about three hundred franchises with public-private partnership all over the country, including FATA, by June next year. The SME BSF Chief Executive Syed Saqib Mohyuddin said this on Monday at the inauguration ceremony of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Leadership (CEL) at the Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST) in Islamabad. Mohyudin said that this venture was much needed as despite the fact that franchising had huge potential in the Pakistani economy, there was no local platform offering franchising opportunities in Pakistan. Entrepreneurs did not have any forum where they can look out for upcoming franchising ventures. Mohyudin stated that BSF would not only help create a link between the franchisees and the franchisers but would also assist entrepreneurs in working through business formalities such as legal issues, marketing and operational plans, training etc. Mohyudin said that BSF would then outsource the business development activities of the franchises to its registered BDSPs who have expertise in the required industry or sector.Talking about CEL, Mohyudin said that the center would act as a business incubator and provide support to entrepreneurs in developing fresh and innovative products in line with the evolving needs of the domestic and international markets. “The increased emphasis on entrepreneurship is the only way forward for employment generation and the revival of business activities in the country,” said Mohyudin. Khushhali Bank Limited President Ghalib Nishtar said that the bank would provide support to the BSF in order to promote entrepreneurship in the country. He said that economic growth today was possible only through the encouragement of entrepreneurship and that initiatives such as CEL would definitely pay dividends in terms of increased exports, enhanced GDP, job creation and improved overall competitiveness. SZABIST Director Syed Asad Hussain assured that CEL would allow students to get support for new and successful business start-ups.
