The Hindu Business Line : Where teens venture

A math whiz since childhood, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Rasha Al Dabbas, 15, would take up a career in engineering or medicine. So when she informed her parents of her dream to open branches of her own bank in different provinces of Syria after graduation, they were taken aback.

Dalal Al Imadi, 15, has come up with a novel idea of creating a Web site to design advertisements for companies. “This is a very rare idea, giving companies an opportunity to promote their products on my Web site. There is no such Web site in Syria, yet,” she claims proudly.

Turning away from the popular career options of doctor, teacher or engineer, young women in Syria are setting out to storm the hitherto male bastion of the business world, be it in the banking sector, Web-designing or as a private enterprise.

Holding young hands

Under the auspices of SHABAB, a Syrian NGO, young girls are being given a unique opportunity to achieve their potential in diverse fields. The project is a national movement of local community action. “The objectives of SHABAB are to boost entrepreneurship among young Syrians, encourage them to enter the business world equipped with the skills needed,” explains Yamama Al-Oraibi, Project Manager, SHABAB.

The NGO runs four programmes across Syria, where volunteers from businesses bring their knowledge and experience into the classrooms. Yamana says in three years the project has benefited over 46,000 young people in 500 schools and recruited over 350 business volunteers.

Confident youngsters

At the Al Farouk School for Girls in downtown Damascus, students of Class 10 are busy working on different projects in groups of six. Rasha, who is the Marketing Manager of her project, says she and her friends want to set up a bank which will have branches in each province. She is aware of the challenges of competing with bigger established banks, but has worked out a strategy to offer quality service. “To attract more customers, we will hold a lottery on special occasions and during Easter we will give our customers gifts. We will also put up a permanent donation-box in our bank for charity collection,” she says.

“This project has opened our eyes to different job possibilities. As women, we don’t need to confine ourselves to teaching or other traditionally accepted female occupations. My parents have been very supportive. They know that Maths is my favourite subject and are confident I will excel because of my determination,” she adds with a smile.

Brave dreams

The optimism and enthusiasm of these adolescents is amply evident as each of them talks animatedly about her pet project. “I want to start a clothes and toy company for children which I will name ‘Baby Tune’,” says Sara Parees, 15.

Envisioning a luxury company offering competitive prices, Sara hopes to raise the initial capital by approaching charitable institutions or established business firms. “I feel as a single woman one has an advantage as charities look favourably upon us for loans. Also, I could approach big companies to sponsor us if we agree to give them a percentage of our future profits,” she says.

“I don’t think every woman should be a doctor or engineer. Girls have more choices today,” asserts Rouqa Hamzah, 16. Rouqa and Yoser Shelleh, 15, want to design women’s garments and accessories. They have already chosen a location for their boutique, Beauty World, which they will open after graduation.

“The logo of our boutique is a yellow lamp. The idea is to tell customers that our shop is like the genie of Aladdin’s lamp and we will provide them with all their needs,” explains Yoser. “Our dresses will be in western style, which is in vogue now for both formal and party wear,” adds Rouqa. The two, in partnership with another friend, plan to each bring some capital to start their dream shop. “Yes, it is a risk, but it is interesting and it’s also what we want to do. We are confident because each of us will pool different experiences.”

Mariam Idris, 15, has planned a mall called Shining Island which will include a spa, an American restaurant and a dormitory for children.

Promoting women in business

One of the distinctive features of SHABAB is that it offers different segments of society the opportunity to participate in its programmes and play an active role in the community, says Mais Balkhi, a Business Experience Assistant Manager. She points out that the organisation’s strongest working relationships are with the local business communities, government and civil society.

SHABAB forms part of the Syria Trust for Development and was launched under the patronage of Syria’s First Lady, Asma Akhras al Assad. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), female participation in total labour force has increased from 12.4 per cent to 16.3 per cent between 1994 and 2006.

To encourage young women entrepreneurs, the government has started a two-fold micro-credit scheme that gives women access to finance as well as training in marketing, sales and advertising, says Asma. “We are the first country in the Middle-East to develop a micro-credit legislation to support small entrepreneurs to register their companies in the formal sector, so that they have tax and other benefits,” she adds.

More Stories on : Entrepreneurship | Gender

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