Activities of the Entrepreneurial Investment Forum “Forsa 2024” concluded… Strategies to ensure success of startups discussed

Damascus – The activities of the third Entrepreneurial Investment Forum “Forsa 2024” (Opportunity) concluded on Saturday, organized by the National Union of Syrian Students and the Syrian Foundation for Young Entrepreneurs, with the aim of opening horizons for university students to enter the labor market.

Participants at the Reda Saeed Conference Hall at Damascus University discussed issues relating to funding, taxes and facilitating loans with the aim of addressing financial challenges and improving access to funding.

Participants made interventions that focused on working to prevent double taxation, so that either regulatory fees or taxes are paid, not both.

Participants proposed several future solutions with the aim of developing strategies that ensure continuous support for entrepreneurship.

They discussed several strategies to ensure the long-term success of start-ups, calling for the establishment of a free zone dedicated to IT-based projects.

The participants also proposed establishing an investment fund to support entrepreneurship and incentive programmes.

The Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade in the caretaker government, Mohammad Samer Al-Khalil, spoke about the government measures being taken to support entrepreneurship.

Al-Khalil stressed the government’s keenness to remove all obstacles facing the entrepreneurship sector towards the future development of project growth.

Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the caretaker government Bassam Ibrahim stressed the importance of embracing creative, thoughtful young people with pioneering works to transform them into practical, applied projects in all fields in the future.

The Minister of Communications and Information Technology in the caretaker government Iyad Al-Khatib announced the establishment of the first technology city in the Al-Dimas area in Damascus countryside, in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and Foreign Trade.

Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Louay Al-Munjed considered that the “Forsa” Forum is a direct embodiment of the visions presented by President Bashar Al-Assad in his speech before the People’s Assembly regarding the importance of partnership between popular organizations, non-governmental organizations, entrepreneurs and universities.

Dareen Suleiman, President of the National Union of Syrian Students, explained that the aim of the dialogue sessions is to listen to the owners of emerging companies in a way that contributes to developing the environment of entrepreneurs.

Dr. Thuraya Idlebi, Director General of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, confirmed the Authority’s readiness to receive and support the pioneers participating in the forum.

Hanan Shamout