Global Entrepreneurship Week has kicked off a week early in several countries to accommodate the Muslim holiday, Eid al-Adha. Here we take a look at some of the first wave of official GEW launches:
Malaysia
GEW Malaysia kicked off with a bang yesterday in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian Hosts Warisan Global brought together leading members of their GEW network to celebrate the start of the Week, including the Deputy Higher Education Minister (and patron of the Week) Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah, as well as MAD Incubator Sdn Bhd CEO Andrew Wong.
Warisan’s CEO Dhakshinamoorthy Balakrishnan told the audience and gathered media, "There are three reasons to pay attention to GEW. First, visibility is crucial for entrepreneurs and we provide that, both locally and globally. Second is mentorship. All entrepreneurs need to grow to the next level and GEW's vast network of successful entrepreneurs provides that. And third, it allows entrepreneurs to take their ideas and go global." Andrew Wong echoed those sentiments, paying tribute to the good ideas coming out of Malaysia, particularly those that resulted from the recent Startup and Eureka Weekends held for GEW.
Tunisia
As Tunisia celebrated the start of its first ever GEW yesterday, plans for the Week were unveiled at a press conference in the capital Tunis yesterday. Chekib Nouira, Chairman of Hosts IACE announced that more than 100 events will be held across 18 districts in the coming week. Nouira also launched the Week’s flagship activity, ‘The Tour of the Entrepreneurship Flame’. The tour will see a specially commissioned torch making an Olympian-style circuit of the national campaign’s key attractions in the name of entrepreneurship. And with more than 100 partners on board and the official patronage of the President of the Republic, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the campaign is well equipped to make a big impact this year.
Turkey
Hosts Endeavor Turkey drew together over 100 entrepreneurs, leading media and key partners for a ‘Breakfast Press Conference’ last Friday. Leaders from the Week in Turkey were present to celebrate the start of the initiative, as well as announce details of the program. The panel included:
- Gülden Yılmaz – TOBB (Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey) Young Entrepreneurs’ Council - Global Entrepreneurship Week Coordination Team Spokesperson
- Ali Sabancı – TOBB Young Entrepreneurs’ Council Chairman
- Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu – TOBB Chairman
- Aynur Bektaş – TOBB Women Entrepreneurs’ Council Chairwoman
- Ozcan Tahincioğlu – Endeavor Turkey Chairman