Students engaged in an activity as part of the Enterprise Qatar’s programme to promote entrepreneurial spirit.
DOHA: Enterprise Qatar (EQ), the state’s entrepreneurial support body, this week launched a new programme in partnership with the Schools Olympic Programme (SOP) to foster entrepreneurial spirit in school-age students in the area of ‘Sport and Investment’, a statement issued by EQ said yesterday.
The 2013 theme for the SOP is ‘The Business of Sport’, and will feature a series of workshops in cooperation with EQ that will target approximately 350 students between the ages of 15 and 18. Working in coordination with the Qatar Olympic Committee, the programme’s main objectives are to equip students with new business and trading skills and encourage them to explore their entrepreneurial ideas.
EQ is working closely with Irish service providers Foroige, a leader in their field in Europe, to develop and implement a series of workshops and projects to advance business education curricula, build capacity among teachers and support entrepreneurship initiatives within their schools. The student workshops also serve EQ’s greater goal of supporting the World Cup in 2022 and help create a diverse, knowledge-based economy and a vibrant private sector in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.
Noora Al Mannai, the CEO of EQ and one of the members of the jury, said: “Enterprise Qatar believes that to create a healthy SME and entrepreneurial scenario in Qatar, we need to support the country’s future entrepreneurs. The best way to achieve this is through building capacity within the educational system.
“Sports business is the perfect way to ignite youngsters’ imaginations, spark interest in tomorrow’s entrepreneurs, and support Qatar in its ambitions when it comes to hosting grand sports events. We are proud to be part of developing the future generation of our country’s business leaders.”
The five days of activities will see 350 students from several schools participating in workshops on creativity and innovation in business, with a focus on sports. Once the students have been coached and offered support by the professional trainers through attested programmes, they will have the opportunity to pitch their sports business ideas to a panel of experts.
Those students who succeed in the pitch process will have the opportunity to realise their projects in the form of product stands at a school market, followed by a public market located within the Villagio Mall.
Students will be encouraged to learn and apply skills in business planning, trading activities and the development and implementation of marketing and product promotion plans.
Participating schools will be provided with the necessary materials to support the activities and will be given a series of workbooks donated to the schools’ Business Studies Departments by EQ. Foroige is developing the work books in cooperation with EQ.
The workshops intend to raise awareness among Qatar’s student population of the viability and importance of sports related businesses, encouraging them to explore sports and other allied industries as a pathway to employment, entrepreneurship and new business opportunities.
The Peninsula
