The Objective

Discover is a product of collaborative efforts of the Pakistani Prime Minister, NUST and CAN. Its objective is very similar to that of Invent’s i.e. to close the gap between the academia and industrial sector by providing students with entrepreneurial traits and ideas with opportunities that help them take their ventures forward.

Invent was created with the collaboration of Cambridge Advisors Network and IBA’s Center for Entrepreneurial Development with the intention of developing and improving the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Pakistan. It aims at achieving this by bridging the gap between the industrial sector and the academia. The business plan competition creates a platform conducive for the interaction of students and professionals and exchange of ideas that have the potential of being crystallized into commercial ventures

The year 2011 witnessed the inception of Discover. In 2012 alone over 1,300 students from 53 universities of Pakistan registered to participate in the Prime Minister’s Entrepreneurial Challenge.

The event spans over a period of four months. Here is a short summary the

1. Groups of students from different universities register. Each group consists of students from different areas of specialization including business and engineering and submits a draft of their business plan. Business plans are evaluated and short listed.
2. Training centers are set up in different cities including Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Here, all registered participants are trained on how to develop an effective Executive Summary and Elevator Pitch by mentors. Submitted Executive Summaries and Elevator Pitches are evaluated and short listed.
3. The short listed groups interact one-on-one by professionals from tens of public and private organizations who train them on how create Business Plans and Draft Presentations. Based on these BP’s and DP’s, more candidates are short listed.
4. Finalists then present before the judges and three winners are selected.
5. A total of Rs. 10 million is awarded to the three finalist teams as cash prize.