The Pakistan Startup Report was written by Pakistani entrepreneur and founder of DYL Ventures, Adam Dawood (@adamdawood) and Silicon Valley entrepreneur and founder of World Startup Report and CardMunch, Bowei Gai (@bowei). It is part of the much larger, World Startup Report, which is in turn part of a project to create a World Startup Wiki, which will document startup ecosystems around the globe.
What The Report Contains
The Pakistan Startup Report is a must-read for anyone interested in the Pakistan startup ecosystem. The report, like the World Startup Report, aims to:
- Encourage investors to take advantage of the current opportunities in the Pakistani startup ecosystem,
- Document Pakistan’s startup ecosystem through detailed analyses and reports based on the local culture, trends, key players and challenges,
- Connect local entrepreneurs with each other and the global startup community and empower them to become ambassadors for Pakistan’s startup ecosystem.
To this end, the report starts off with an overview of Pakistan, and the opportunities available for investors and entrepreneurs. It covers the major cities, the incubator programs in them as well as co-working spaces available to entrepreneurs. It goes on to highlight the key successes, angels, incubators and venture capitalists in the country, as well as conferences and events held in the country to support the startup ecosystem. In this way, the first half of the report is all about the reasons why Pakistan would be a great place to invest, and also the key players in the startup community.
Challenges and Opportunities
Everyone knows there are challenges in setting up a business in the country, and the report doesn’t hide these aspects of Pakistan. It mentions the Internet censorship, the lack of people interested in setting up a new business, but also the huge number of Pakistani entrepreneurs abroad who could be encouraged to return with the right incentives. The report also discusses how the investments in infrastructure have made the Pakistan ripe for technological investments, but the challenges of setting up credit card payments in the country. There are almost 1 million freelancers in the country, and huge talent that can be directed towards entrepreneurship. The government also has very liberal policies towards investments coming in from abroad.
All these things make Pakistan a challenging country to invest in, but the potential for profit is just as huge. A lot of business niches are untapped, and new investors can take advantage of them early on.
Advice For Entrepreneurs And Investors
The report also provides great advice to the different players; local entrepreneurs, international entrepreneurs, foreign angels, and international companies.
Local entrepreneurs should approach incubators, participate in startup competitions and be optimistic. Foreign entrepreneurs need to be quick to enter the market and quickly establish a network they can use in the future. Foreign angels should take advantage of the liberal investment policies the country has to offer them. Foreign companies looking to enter the market need to establish themselves now, even though the market is still developing, since they will be in a good position once the Internet revolution takes place. With the launch of 3G and 4G services, the country is on the brink of great technological advancement.
All in all, the Pakistan Startup Report does a great job in highlighting the opportunities and challenges that face entrepreneurs and investors. Filled with data and information, it is a free report available to anyone interested.
What is DYL Ventures?
DYL Ventures was founded in 2013 by Adam Dawood.
“We are a Pakistan based internet consultancy that helps entrepreneurs build their internet startups and marketing plans.”
Interested in supporting local entrepreneurs who have the best ideas for new businesses, DYL Ventures hopes to bring technological and operational expertise to each startup they work with. Decisions regarding the ideas they support are based on merit and data, and they are always looking for teams of people they can work with.
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