International Certificate in Entrepreneurship (ICE) is a joint initiative of Accelerate Prosperity, Pakistan (AP) and E4Impact Foundation (E4Impact) of Altis School of Business of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Milan. It is launched in Pakistan in 2020 for aspiring and existing entrepreneurs to help them start and grow their business ideas and early-stage businesses, respectively.

ICE is a blended learning approach that provides remote training and advisory on business modeling, marketing, and sales, financial management, financial modelling and pitch making. It also provides various tools that allow the entrepreneurs to improve investment readiness, such as information Memorandum, Financial Model and Pitch Deck.

International Certificate in Entrepreneurship (ICE) is a unique approach where a pool of trainers, mentors, subject-matter experts and business coaches consisting of seasoned trainers, entrepreneurs, subject matter experts and investment analysts, and whose capacities are relevant to types of businesses selected for incubation services, design and lead the entire process. The process is specifically designed for new ideas and early-stage businesses which have significant potential for growth and impact.

All modules and advisory sessions included in the process are output-driven, and trainers, mentors, subject-matter experts and business coaches are expected to specifically deliver high-quality of pre-defined outputs in each module. Modules are designed in chronological order and topics covered in each module are both dependent on the material covered in the previous module and drive the content of the subsequent module. The quality of outputs in each module, therefore, drives the quality of delivery in the subsequent modules. Each component includes a comprehensive practice and action planning which allows the participants to apply the concepts in their businesses within a prescribed timeline.

Towards the end of the process, select entrepreneurs will get an opportunity to qualify for an Online Business Forum where they get to pitch their business ideas to AP, financial institutions, impact investment funds from Pakistan and overseas for securing financing/ investments.

ACCELERATE PROSPERITY

The overall objective of the Accelerate Prosperity (AP) initiative is to promote entrepreneurship and the creation of sustainable Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs), with a focus on youth and women in fragile contexts. Its mandate is to facilitate creation of Small and Growing Businesses (SGB), which are “commercially viable businesses with a potential to create between 5 to 250 jobs”.

This is a fit-for-purpose initiative undertaken by the Aga Khan Foundation and Industrial Promotion Services of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development. AP complements broader economic-related programmes of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) and draws significantly on technical expertise from other AKDN institutions, whilst coordinating efforts with other partners.

E4Impact Foundation

E4impact Foundation (E4Impact) is an initiative launched in 2010 by ALTIS (Graduate School of Business and Society of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), with the objective of training impact entrepreneurs in emerging markets in order to support the start-up and growth of their businesses. In 2015, E4Impact became a Foundation with the support of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Securfin, Mapei, Salini-Impregilo, Bracco, ENI and other Individual Participants. The work of the Foundation contributes to the accomplishment of many of the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Goals, including access to quality education, decent work, economic growth, poverty and hunger reduction.