Shell TameerIntroduction & History |
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LiveWIRE was launched in 1982 in Scotland to address massive unemployment statistics among the youth. Following the phenomenal success of Shell LiveWIRE UK, 1998 saw the launch of Shell LiveWIRE internationally. LiveWIRE International works to promote the spirit of enterprise in young people from all social strata. Working with local enterprise development organizations as well as NGOs, vocational/polytechnic institutions, governments, corporations and community programmes, LiveWIRE delivers practical support to those people as they develop the skills needed to plan, launch and manage new business enterprises. LiveWIRE is currently operating programmes in 27 programs, with 7 more programs in the launch process. LiveWIRE International has proven to be a great success, and this is owed to the fact that each LiveWIRE program is localised to cater to the specific needs within that particular country. With the planned expansion of the international programmes this success can only grow, making Shell LiveWIRE synonymous with youth enterprise on a global scale. Shell Pakistan launched Shell LiveWIRE in 2003, with the local name ‘Tameer’ (which means ‘to build’), with the aim of helping youth across the country towards their own socio-economic development but also of their communities and Pakistan as well. Shell Tameer encourages young people aged between 18-32 years to consider starting a business as a desirable and viable career option by providing free information, counselling, support and training on entrepreneurship. Tameer is committed to helping youth from all four provinces of the country, irrespective of socio-economic, educational, religious backgrounds; in Pakistan, this involves a lot of work at the grassroots level. Tameer does not create entrepreneurs, it identifies them and provides them with the tools to start a business: from preparing for the risks involved to providing them access to avenues of business and financial support. Tameer's slogan is "Building On Young Business Ideas". Tameer also develops an individual's entrepreneurial skills needed to plan, launch and manage new business enterprises. Shell Tameer provides practical support to these young people through partnerships with business support, educational, financial and community organizations.
Tameer was launched in 2003. In the initial three years, the project was supported by Shell international, after which it is expected to build partnerships to further expand and grow.
LiveWIRE schemes operate hand in hand with local and national government to facilitate delivery of economic and social inclusion programmes. Shell Tameer typically provides the following services:
1. Enquiry Service: By providing information young people are introduced to the idea of starting a business: how to find and develop a business idea, where to seek help, how to prepare a business plan and conduct market research.
2. Mentoring Service: Young people are offered the opportunity to be linked with a LiveWIRE mentor and their particular area of expertise for further advice and training.
3. Awareness Seminars: These seminars create awareness of entrepreneurship among students of business, professional, vocational and polytechnic schools.
4. Workshops: Tameer has localised two training workshops which it conducts, Module I - Bright Ideas Workshops conducted for groups of young people to stimulate exchange of ideas and encourage good planning prior to starting a business; and Module II – Becoming a Successful Owner Manager, for best practices for business expansion and process improvement.
5. Awards: The awards programme recognizes and celebrates the success and effort of 10 young people in developing their own businesses. This high profile event not only attracts good publicity for the young entrepreneurs but also provides an opportunity for dialogue with government. The awards are to serve as motivation and inspiration for other potential young people. Awards are given for best progress in growing and developing the business in its first 2 or 3 years.
In addition, Tameer is engaged in the following activities:
6. Course revision and for Polytechnic and Vocational Institutes: Tameer, alongside the Sindh Board of Technical Education has taken the initiative to revise the course outline for the Technical Education and Vocational Training Students and making entrepreneurship part of their curriculum. The aim is to encourage these students to couple their technical skill with entrepreneurship for a better livelihood.
7. Tameer Entrepreneurship Club [TEC]: A Tameer Entrepreneurs Club has also been launched to act as a platform for exchange of ideas and experiences. It has been developed for students, youth who are currently employed and aspire towards entrepreneurship, and those who are already established as entrepreneurs. It provides a link for students with professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs.
8. Providing Linkages: Through Tameer’s extensive network, entrepreneurs gain linkages to the market, financial assistance, business linkages and links with other entrepreneurs.
In order to implement the project, Shell Tameer has entered into the following partnerships: (a) Operational partnership with Small & Medium Enterprise Development Authority (SMEDA) to provide technical, advisory and capacity building services for young entrepreneurs; and for outreach through their infrastructure; (b) Developmental partnership with Institute of Business Administration Karachi (IBA) to localize and develop materials for the Pakistani context; (c) Delivery partnership with Small & Medium Enterprise [SME] Bank to assist entrepreneurs in acquiring funding; and (d) Delivery partnership with Rotaract to tap their extensive member network to achieve greater reach in remote communities around the country. Each of these partnerships thrives on a shared purpose and enables Shell Tameer to extend its outreach.
In addition, Tameer collaborates with the City District Governments, various microfinance institutions and leasing companies, NGO’s, business, vocational and polytechnic educational institutions, and corporations to maximize Tameer’s impact.
Since its inception, the Shell Tameer program has engaged more than 40,000 young people through Workshops, Seminars, Meetings and our website. 41 workshops have been conducted for 2000 young people, and 61 seminars have provided awareness to over 12,000 students. The Tameer program has helped young entrepreneurs in establishing business ventures, network with peers, and benefit from identification of potential business opportunities and for networking with financial and business support institutions. In addition, a Shell Tameer Mentoring Service has been initiated to further assist young entrepreneurs in understanding the issues and challenges they may face and providing guidance from established professionals, trainings and case studies on how to meet these challenges. Several toolkits and feasibility studies have also been prepared and are available for ready reference and use.
Some of the main challenges faced by Tameer include the scope of the project, a countrywide initiative, this makes it crucial to build effective partnerships; managing follow ups and completing the entrepreneurship cycle; With the massive growth of the program, financial support for the program is needed to meet the expectations of the disillusioned youth.
Based on our success so far, Shell Tameer intends to expand its outreach and target youth in the rural areas, collaborating with the Government initiative to promote rural enterprise, especially rural women’s enterprise. In order to achieve this, we will be deepening our engagement with existing partners as well as identifying new strategic partnerships. Tameer will work in the earthquake-affected areas as part of the rehabilitation process. In the future, Tameer is also looking forward to building synergies and partnerships towards common goals to help grow and expand the project.
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