RURAL YOUNG SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS NETWORK (RYSEN)

Promoting Youth-led Grassroots Innovation

Challenge

• Pakistan houses the largest number of youth in its history. It has the world’s fifth largest 15- to 24-year-old population. 2/3 the total population (68.36%) is concentrated below the age of 30.

• Pakistan has a relatively large proportion (32%) of uneducated youth mostly living in rural areas with no vocational and life skills, who end up in elementary occupations or remain either unemployed or inactive.

• It is a great demographic opportunity. This demographic opportunity is turning into a demographic disaster due to poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and fragile governance structures.

• The future of the Pakistan is based on our ability to reach out and equip the disadvantaged rural youth of Pakistan with the social entrepreneurship education and skills to realize their potential-and create the jobs for them to unleash their potential. In short, investing in disadvantaged rural youth is essential for the survival of Pakistan.

Vision and Mission

Vision

Transformed disadvantaged rural youth from victims to social entrepreneurs.

Mission

Supporting disadvantaged rural youth to realize their dreams through social entrepreneurship trainings, mentoring, physical and social infrastructural

support and financial assistance.

Solution

• RYSEN will be set up at union council level to inspire young people from disadvantaged rural backgrounds to become social entrepreneurs and business entrepreneurs.

• RYSEN will be run by seven magnificent young people from disadvantaged rural backgrounds who have a specific skill or knowledge to offer.

• Each young person in the RYSEN will be provided social entrepreneurship training and financial assistance (Nabi Fund) to create his/her own youth service providers network of at-least five members for a period of 12 months.

• The key activities of RYSEN members will be identifying, training, mentoring, connecting and engaging rural youth in their area of expertise such as education, health, information technology, agriculture, livestock and skills to branch out their services at village and community levels.

A twin track approach will be followed by the RYSEN. The members of RYSEN will not only establish their own enterprises but also identify, train, engage and mentor youth from villages to branch out their services to villages and communities.

Each RYSEN member will create a service provider network comprising of at-least 5 members in his/her area of specialization to promote youth-led grassroots social innovation.

Theory of Change

• Young people from disadvantaged rural backgrounds are finding it very hard to find decent jobs as there are almost no jobs available for them. They are left with no option other than to start their own enterprises.

• Since there are no institutions available at local level which can provide social entrepreneurship training and education, physical and social infrastructure and access to funding to these young people, the NRSP and YES have decided to launch this project to fill the huge gap existing in the area of social enterprise development as an option for economic survival of disadvantaged rural young people.

• The project will be a good way of developing enterprise and employability skills and of promoting entrepreneurship among disadvantaged rural youth.

RYSEN Operational Model

Methodology

• Open Sessions in Union Councils

• Formation of Contact Groups

• RYSEN Competition

• Selection of Best Ideas from the Different Fields

• Formation of Rural Youth Social Entrepreneurs Network (RYSEN)

• Training and Financial Assistance of RYSEN Members

• Creation of Service Providers Network by RYSEN Members

Social Impact

• Moved from a traditional “charity” approach of “helping the disadvantaged” youth to a transformational, “social enterprise” approach of empowering and motivating youth to take control of their future prosperity.

• Established first network of rural young social entrepreneurs from disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Provided well-designed training and employment opportunities to rural youth from disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Encouraged diverse youth-led grassroots innovation for sustainable development.

Social Impact

• Moved from a traditional “charity” approach of “helping the disadvantaged” youth to a transformational, “social enterprise” approach of empowering and motivating youth to take control of their future prosperity.

• Established first network of rural young social entrepreneurs from disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Provided well-designed training and employment opportunities to rural youth from disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Encouraged diverse youth-led grassroots innovation for sustainable development.