Pakistan: big challenges soon to unleash bigger opportunities
Still at embryonic stage, Pakistani startup scene is evolving fast as entrepreneurs tackle the country’s vital problems and hustle to make a lasting impact.
The digital revolution enabled Pakistani entrepreneurs to develop innovative solutions to country’s massive challenges like fake pharmaceutical products, access to clean water and stable electricity — certainly the biggest opportunities of the century.
Excited by the country’s mega potential, these were my initial thoughts while I was on my way to Karachi 021Disrupt, region’s leading conference organized by the wonderful The Nest i/o team.
021Disrupt is a testament to the fact that our eco-system in maturing and talented and passionate Pakistani entrepreneurs are enroute to building strong and sustainable companies with innovative and lasting solutions to many of the big challenges of today. — Jehan Ara, The Nest i/o
Reshaping the country’s global identity
Battling conservative social norms, more Pakistanis are starting their own ventures with a vision to create a better future. A resilient sense of mission and commitment were the first things I noticed about the entrepreneurs in the 2-day conference, with over 650 people from 200 startups.
Driven by a purpose much bigger than themselves, they all realize the need to make money, but none of them were driven by solely that. Brave and capable, the growing band of young Pakistani entrepreneurs surmount a clutch of social, political and economic challenges not entirely under their control — in a country where no prime minister has even completed a five-year term!
Pakistan is slowly witnessing shifts in social norms and restore international confidence
The foreign perceptions of a security vacuum make it harder for startups to attract international investors. Nevertheless, the country has South Asia’s most liberal investment policy, allowing 100% international equity ownership.
The sixth populous country with over 200M people, Pakistan has one million people coming mobile online every month, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. This massive market was unfairly dismissed and overlooked by foreign investors for decades.
Excited by the open field, international investors like Bakery (by Abraaj), Wamda, Golden Gate Ventures, Middle East Venture Partners and the Oman Technology Fund gathered around the Investor Roundtable to grab a slice of the gigantic pie.
Locals need to be first in line to invest and as our success stories go public, other investors will also want a piece of the pie and jump in with larger funds.The favourable conditions for the private sector, plethora of talented engineers and the burgeoning startup community all indicate that Pakistan can be Asia’s new breakout story. — Ali Mukhtar, Fatima Ventures
Large market and huge needs always result in great impact
Pakistanis already built globally-competing tech titans with unicorns like Careem and FireEye, founded by Pakistani diaspora with tech development teams back home, signaling country’s potential for innovation beyond its borders.
Opposing the societal norms oppressing woman, Careem started initiatives to hire female drivers in the country ultimately provide social benefit by job opportunities, women empowerment and resolving traffic issues.
Pakistani startups are value driven, and unlike the mega-success stories in the West, these lucrative endeavors ultimately also make a tangible difference for shared prosperity, cohesiveness and improved lives.
The real potential is hidden under what others see as insurmountable problems
Pakistani entrepreneurs have a key role to play in a region characterized by severe socio-economic problems. These believers are by definition contrarians — against all the traditional social norms and pressure.
Now it is the investor’s time to take a long term view, when others are still fearful of Pakistan. By definition, a contrarian must be early but not too early to be successful. There is a small window of greatness, the sweetspot, and Pakistan is in the midst of it.
There lies the huge opportunity that the rest of the world is still blind to. But the window is closing fast. MENA funds like Wamda, Bakery and MEVP are all bullish on deploying a good portion of their new funds into Pakistan.
So what’s contrarian today will become the consensus really fast — just like it happened in Malaysia, Indonesia or India.
