The US Pledges to continue support to Startups in Pakistan
The United States (US) has pledged to continue supporting entrepreneurship and startups in Pakistan following an increase in fundraising.
Aaron Tarver, the acting public affairs officer for the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan, stated during his address at the Grand Finale of the 2022 Pakistan Startup Cup that Pakistani startups were performing well and generating funds.
US Embassy holds Startup competition in Pakistan
According to him, the sponsorship of the Pakistan Startup Cup by the U.S. Embassy has and will continue to increase entrepreneurial and startup activity throughout the country through sustained coaching and mentoring.
This can only foster a robust culture of entrepreneurship in local communities across all regions.”
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He stated that there has been a fivefold increase in the amount of capital raised by startups. “We will continue to support start-ups and entrepreneurship in Pakistan to contribute to the economy of Pakistan,” he added.
The Ministry of Information Technology, the Ministry of Finance, and the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad attended the event. The chief guests awarded the winning teams from across Pakistan with cash and checks.
At the event, Murtaza Zaidi, president of TiE Islamabad, spoke at the event and stated, “Over the past decade, the Pakistan Startup Cup has mentored more than 2,000 startups.”
The competition recruits top industry mentors to assist startups in refining their business models. We have partnered with the U.S. Embassy to provide a conducive environment for our entrepreneurs.”
This year, more than 900 startups received coaching, business preparation, and mentoring through the competition. They were narrowed down to the top 21 business ideas, with teams presenting their ideas at the finale with an eye on the first-place cash prize of 1,000,000 rupees to invest in their business. The second and third place winners also received funding to further develop their startup concepts.
The objective of the Pakistan Startup Cup is to connect, scale, and inspire entrepreneurs and innovators from across the nation. They launched the eighth Pakistan Startup Cup Cycle in Quetta, Gilgit, Mirpur, Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, and Karachi this year. The leading 21 Pakistani startups participated in over 170 hours of workshops and over 50 hours of mentoring from industry professionals.
The business proposals submitted for the competition included, among others, innovative concepts for ed-tech, health-tech, fin-tech, agri-tech, e-commerce, and food businesses.
