AHAN Team

SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

Enterprise Development

Enterprise Development support in rural/peri-urban areas of Pakistan.

Capacity Building

Capacity building of rural enterprises in product design and quality improvement, use of advanced technology, production management and marketing.

Product Development, Technical Upgradation And Quality Assurance

Management of design and technical development of products targeted by the program, including patents and technology, procedures for product development and quality assurance.

Marketing Strategy

Development and implementation of marketing strategy including market analysis, product selection, brand development, promotional campaign, test marketing and distribution system for rural non farm products of Pakistan.

Phase Wise Project Development

Under the guidance of a Project Steering Committee consisting of public and private sector (Minister for Industries, Production & Special Initiatives, Mr. Jehangir Khan Tareen heading the Steering Committee which have Minister of State for Economic Affairs Division, Secretary Industries, Secretary Commerce, and Chief Executive Officer of SMEDA as representatives of Public Sector and Seven members from Private Sector), the proposed project will be implemented in two phases.

AHAN Cell (Phase - I)

Focusing on project approach of developing strong linkages with all concerned, AHAN activities will be coordinated by AHAN cell to be housed within the SMEDA. The AHAN Cell staff will develop the outreach and resources to build the business competencies of small rural enterprises. The cell will undertake preparatory work with the help of international and local experts in order to design and implement a market driven development program, identifying areas for further research, initiating collection of required data and designing pilot projects in selected sub sectors. For this purpose, Cell will have dedicated staff for enterprise/cluster development, product development, quality assurance, technical assistance and marketing and distribution. AHAN Cell will also lead to the design of the organizational and operational framework for AHAN Pakistan - Rural Enterprise Modernization Company (REMC), (outreach strategy, structure, an initial business plan, standard operating procedures, etc.). It will also help setting up of REMC under section 42 of Companies Ordinance.

I. Research

The AHAN Cell will review the existing secondary sources of data and studies on rural non farm enterprises, identify the key knowledge gaps, and commission/conduct additional research in order to develop a more complete and purposeful information base on the rural non farm economy. It will prepare
a database on the geographic and product mix of rural and peri-urban small enterprises and occupational groups in Pakistan. Such information is scarce at present. The database will systematically identify where and how (by scale, employment, and other enterprise characteristics) product sub sectors tend to "cluster". This information will enable selection of sub sectors and geographic clusters, and in turn, the selection of specific business to work with within a sub sector. The result will be a comprehensive analytical database that comprises the extent of the knowledge about the rural non farm economy. It may provide a "non-stop shop" for rural development workers.

The AHAN Cell will determine the sub sector selection criteria in conjunction with other stakeholders. These criteria are likely to include: (i) size of the sector (the number of MSEs and people employed); (ii) growth potential (local and national demand and export prospects); and (iii) target group priority, i.e. women's or minority group predominance, geographic location, or unemployed youth.

The research methodology for qualitative and quantitative assessments of commercial rural enterprises will be decided. To initiate market development preparation research AHAN Cell will also conduct product selection fairs in four provinces in coordination with Provincial & Local Governments, RSPs, NGOs and Private Sector.

During the first phase, AHAN Cell will also carry out a feasibility study regarding the role and functions of Rural Enterprise Modernization Company or any other suitable alternative which will come into existence after the first phase and will implement the Phase-II of the project. In order to define the role and functions of the proposed organization, extensive consultations will be held with all stakeholders.

II. Pilot Projects

In addition to carrying out research, Government of Pakistan has decided to implement 100 pilot projects throughtout Pakistan. AHAN has already initiated Pilot Projects in collaboration with famous designers M/S Amir Adnan, Deepak Parwani & Rizwan Beyg linking rural women with urban designers / entrepeneurs.

Six hundred handloom workers of Bahawalpur are being trained to produce marketable products. Mutta Mughal Khel cluster of NWFP is being supported in market linkages & products development. Silver jewelry cluster of Bahawalpur has already been exposed to international Exhibition in Bangkok.

Stakeholders in public and private sector have been asked to submit proposals for pilot projects on partnership basis . A large number of proposals have already been received which are being examined for implementation.

AHAN Rural Enterprise Modernization Company (Phase - II)

Based upon the research done and Pilot projects implemented in Phase - I, large scale implementation will be started in Phase - II through AHAN/Rural Enterprise Modernization Company/Organization.