Taking the Initiative
2018 was a year of initiatives for the WIEF Foundation. The initiatives had actively engaged with smaller audiences focusing on their specific entrepreneurial needs and gauge the direction toward which the business world is heading.
WBN: WIEF Social Media Workshop for Women Entrepreneurs
25 – 26 April 2018, Universiti of Brunei Darussalam, Brunei
Taking into account the importance of social media in business, WIEF Businesswomen Network (WBN) and the Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) jointly organised the WIEF Social Media Workshop for Women Entrepreneurs at the Universiti Brunei Darussalam in April 2018. The Workshop’s programme was designed to equip women entrepreneurs with the skills needed to exploit this new phenomenal marketing platform.
36 women such as entrepreneurs, lecturers and students from Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Brunei, attended the Workshop that was held at the Pengiran Anak Puteri Rashidah Sa’adatul Bolkiah Institute of Health Sciences (PAPRSB IHS), UBD. The participants were from various backgrounds and businesses ranging from beauty care, food, education, clothing and other sectors.
The Workshop covered social media strategy, graphics, video, digital marketing, search engine optimisation, web development, animation and AI. Among the guests who attended the closing ceremony were Dato’ Dr Norraesah Mohamad, Chairman of WBN and Associate Professor Dr Mohammad Ayub Sadiq @ Lin Naing, Acting Vice Chancellor of UBD.
WBN: WIEF Women Entrepreneurs Strategic Workshop
Growing Your Business – Mobility Opportunities
28-30 August 2018, Tamu Hotel and Suites, Kuala Lumpur
The purpose of the 3-day workshop was to provide opportunity for women entrepreneurs to find out how to overcome the challenges of today’s highly competitive business environment. In order to achieve this, the programme module was specifically designed to help women entrepreneurs learn and apply sustainable business models and business creativity into their enterprises.
There were four interactive sessions led by a trainer, a half day industrial visit and five special sessions with guest speakers who are experts in their fields. 30 women entrepreneurs aged between 27 and 69 years old, from nine countries – Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Philippines, Yemen, Indonesia, United Kingdom, Sudan, Brunei and Malaysia – from a variety of industries that included food and beverage, education, clothing and other sectors, attended the workshop.
Serba Dinamik Holdings Berhad had volunteered a sponsorship in support of women empowerment in entrepreneurship. Overall, the participants’ diversity and varied businesses offered an excellent platform for them to exchange knowledge, experience and networking opportunity.
WET: Global Discourse on Quantum Computing
Quantum Computing: Fuelling Future Innovations
20 September 2018, InterContinental Hotel, Kuala Lumpur
In order to address the potential strategic advantages and impact of quantum computing, particularly on businesses, the WIEF Foundation organised the WIEF Global Discourse on Quantum Computing at the InterContinental Hotel, Kuala Lumpur on 20 September 2018 which was attended by 43 participants from six countries. The event was also live streamed online.
Four international experts – Assistant Professor Dr Joseph Fitzsimons from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Vice President and Chief Technology Offer Christian Raetzsch from IBM Asia Pacific, Professor Rajiah Simon, a Science and Engineering Research Board Distinguished Fellow from the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in India and Moderator Professor Lai Choy Heng, Professor, National University of Singapore, Singapore, explained the fundamentals and current research of quantum computer and where it is headed. They also simplified the foundations and fundamentals of quantum computing and explained how it evolved over the years.
WYN: WIEF IdeaLab 2018
Building Ecosystems
16 – 17 October 2018, Goa Institute of Management, India
WIEF IdeaLab marked its first regional edition in Goa, India, after three successful editions in Kuala Lumpur since 2015. It was held in Goa Institute of Management (GIM). The initiative was a collaborative effort between WIEF Foundation and GIM, as part of the institute’s series of high-level events in conjunction with its Silver Jubilee celebration.
In Goa, IdeaLab remained a platform that spurred key players in the startup ecosystem to network, share experiences, find ways to sustainably scale up and explore business collaborations. Over 400 participants from eight countries, including Belgium, India, Malaysia, Uganda, the United Kingdom and Denmark, attended the 2-day programme. They were guided by 31 ecosystem experts from six countries who were speakers and trainers.
The presence of WIEF Foundation’s Chairman Tun Musa Hitam, WYN Chairperson Ebrahim Patel, WIEF Foundation’s IAP member Nasser Munjee, Chairman of Goa State Innovation Council Jose Manuel Noronha, Director of GIM Dr Ajit Parulekar and Secretary of Goa Public Service Commission Ameya Abhyankar, added notable significance to the event.
WET: AKEPT-WIEF Social Entrepreneurship Forum
Social Enterprise: Empowering the Future
22 – 23 October 2018, ISTAC, Kuala Lumpur
With the intention to spur social enterprise development in universities, a 2-day forum was organised by WIEF, the Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE) and Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) in collaboration with International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), on 22 – 23 October 2018 at ISTAC in Kuala Lumpur.
The AKEPT-WIEF Social Enterprise Forum had around 300 participants and they were mainly higher education students. Over 30 experts from various countries including India, New Zealand and the Philippines, shared their insights, experiences and their opinions on how to move forward in terms of social entrepreneurship. The forum revolved around five plenary sessions and six masterclasses that shed light on the potential of social enterprise development in universities, how governments can play a role, some lessons from success stories, how to commercialise the businesses and a few experiences from abroad.
The AKEPT-WIEF Social Enterprise Forum succeeded in encouraging active dialogues between participants and speakers. It had highlighted on-going or past social enterprise projects in universities, looked at areas where the relationship between universities and social enterprises could be strengthened, as well as explored ways to further develop social enterprise in universities.
WRT: WIEF-UEF CHENNAI ROUNDTABLE 2018
Innovative and Alternative Finance for Business and Infrastructure Development in India
10 November 2018, Hotel ITC Grand Chola in Chennai, India
The opulent building of Hotel ITC Grand Chola in Chennai buzzed with activity on the morning of 10 November. While WRTs have always kept to an audience of around 100, this one in Chennai is the largest Roundtable WIEF Foundation has ever organised and it was held in collaboration with the United Economic Forum (UEF) Chamber of Commerce.
Over 500 participants, from 32 industries and seven countries – including the United States, Singapore and the UAE – were registered for the WIEF-UEF Chennai Roundtable. It was officiated by the Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, the Hon. O. Panneerselvam. Its full day programme consisted of four sessions and a closed-door meeting. There were 14 speakers, experts in their fields, from at least six countries including Malaysia, Australia, France and Bahrain. They helmed the sessions that discussed alternative finance, its components and investment opportunities in Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Nadu, being India’s second largest economy, and forecasted a robust growth of USD600 billion, was a logical choice for the WRT. In his recorded welcoming speech, Ahmed A. R. Buhari, President of UEF, noted that Tamil Nadu’s growth opportunities are ripe to be capitalised on. Tamil Nadu has established itself as investor-friendly, by providing the necessary incentives and infrastructure, as well as fast-track mode of approvals, making it convenient for those wanting to do business in the state.
Read and download the Foundation’s 2018 annual report for more on each initiative.
