News:CSF urges private sector to participate in WEF
Name of the Newspaper: Pakistan Observer
Date of publication: Monday, 03 September, 2007
Website:http://www.pakobserver.net/news/business04.asp

Staff Reporter

Islamabad—The Competitiveness Support Fund, the partner institution of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Pakistan, will be participating, along with the key private sector leaders and Government representatives in the Dalian Conference from 6-8 September. According to a statement of the CSF, the Fund, a joint initiative of the Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID),has been instrumental in assisting the World Economic Forum in identifying the next generation of global business champions in Pakistan.

These champions, known as the Global Growth Companies, will be brought together in an unprecedented meeting in Dalian, People’s Republic of China. The meeting has already been described as a “Summer Davos”. Organized together with the Chinese government, the gathering will focus on the role that new and fast-emerging multinational companies are playing in fundamentally changing the global business landscape.

By addressing key issues hindering economic growth in Pakistan, CSF has been successful in creating partnerships between the private sector leaders, government and academia to respond to the challenges and opportunities of the globalized economy. The CSF has partnered with the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) and its members to create awareness on taking initiatives improving weaknesses of the private sector in Pakistan such as willingness to delegate authority, extent of staff training, reliance on professional management, extent of incentive compensation, extent of regional sales, company spending on research & development, building capacity for innovation . The Pakistan Business Council (PBC) will be leading the delegation of private sector corporate leaders for this conference. The Competitiveness Support Fund and PBC signed a memorandum of understanding in August 2007 to undertake joint initiatives in engaging the government, research institutes, academia and the private sector in developing evidence-based advice on changes in legislation relating to public policy initiatives.