From the Spark of an Idea to the New Opportunities: Kabul’s Youth on the Path to Entrepreneurship
Every great business was once just an idea, an idea that, through knowledge, courage, and effort, found its way from imagination to reality. With this vision in mind, the ‘Entrepreneurship Center’ of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO), in collaboration with Bakhtar University, organized an entrepreneurship seminar in Kabul attended by professors, students, and young people. The program aimed to bridge the gap between knowledge and practice, and between ideas and opportunities.
University: From Education to Empowerment
Opening the event, Ahmad Farid Arefi, President of Bakhtar University, described entrepreneurship as something that goes beyond simply starting a business. He stated:
“Entrepreneurship is not merely about creating a business; it is about transforming ideas and creativity into opportunities, addressing societal challenges, and building a future in which young people become creators of opportunities rather than seekers of them.”
From Idea to Action
The seminar continued with a specialized and practical presentation by Ghayoor Bawari, a master trainer and successful entrepreneur, who explained the journey of transforming an initial idea into an economic opportunity.
Drawing on practical experience, he discussed identifying market opportunities, generating and evaluating ideas, understanding customer needs, business design, risk management, and the effective use of technology. He emphasized that entrepreneurial success does not depend solely on financial capital; rather, a proper understanding of needs, careful planning, skills, and the ability to execute ideas are equally essential.
Bawari also highlighted the importance of starting small, noting that many successful entrepreneurs began with limited resources. According to him, experimentation, learning from mistakes, and continuous improvement are natural parts of the entrepreneurial journey.
Young People’s Ideas: From Thought to Opportunity
For participants, the seminar provided an opportunity to move beyond theoretical concepts and engage with practical entrepreneurial experiences. They shared their questions and perspectives on markets, investment, starting a business, challenges faced by young people, and ways to transform ideas into economic activities.
One participant, Ahmad Rashid Siddiqi, stated:
“I learned from this program how to transform an idea from a thought into action. It showed me that entrepreneurship does not always require large amounts of capital. A good idea, knowledge, planning, and the determination to start can be the first steps toward creating an opportunity.”
Another participant, Ahmad Mansoor, said that the program changed his perspective on entrepreneurship. In his view, entrepreneurship is not only a means of generating income but can also be a way to solve problems, serve society, and create opportunities for others.
From Learning to Creating Opportunities
At the conclusion of the event, Mohammad Hanif Farzan, President of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO), provided an overview of the organization’s entrepreneurship initiatives and activities.
Referring to seminars and entrepreneurship camps, he explained that the objective of these programs is not merely to provide theoretical knowledge. Rather, they seek to create a practical learning environment where young people can learn how to identify opportunities, develop ideas, understand markets, foster innovation, and transform ideas into economic activities, while also receiving material and moral support to improve their access to Afghanistan’s labor market.
He added that entrepreneurship is not solely an economic activity; it can also be linked to values such as freedom of thought, tolerance of diverse perspectives, dialogue, participation, responsibility, creativity, and equal opportunities for presenting ideas.
A Step Toward the Future
The entrepreneurship seminar in Kabul was part of the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization’s (AELSO) educational and practical initiatives to promote an entrepreneurial culture and strengthen young people’s skills. The program highlighted the connection between knowledge, freedom of thought, innovation, participation, and action.
The seminar’s final message was simple yet meaningful: an idea becomes an opportunity when it moves beyond the mind, is nurtured through dialogue and learning, and enters the field of action with knowledge, skills, responsibility, and determination.