Starting and growing a successful business is a challenging but incredibly rewarding endeavor. IdeoMetriX, a company founded in December 2020 by Mohsin Amir and Muhammad Iqbal, is a shining example of how entrepreneurship can drive economic growth and make a positive impact on the community.

IdeoMetriX’s journey to success began at the SCO Incubation Centre in Gilgit, where the NIC has created an entrepreneurial ecosystem that provides access to fast internet, workspaces, and uninterrupted power supply, all essential for starting and growing businesses. The company was able to take advantage of government-funded programs such as the National Freelance training Program and E-Rozgar Program by the Government of Gilgit Baltistan, which helped to provide the necessary resources and infrastructure to get the company off the ground and grow.

In just two years, IdeoMetriX has been able to create job opportunities for over 50 individuals, with 50% of them being women, creating a gender-inclusive work environment. This emphasis on diversity and inclusion is not just limited to gender, but also includes creating an atmosphere where all individual ideas are heard and respected, which is essential for a successful and creative work environment. They have completed more than 500 projects, launched their own training program and trained over 200 students in just a year, provided internships under its talent growth program to 25 individuals, showing a deep commitment to supporting the community. 

Additionally, the company is also launching two of their own products this year, demonstrating their focus on innovation and forward-thinking. One is DigiHunar a distance learning platform aimed to provide Youth in Gilgit Baltistan access to advance skill development trainings and freelancing and the other is Hotela a creative and client oriented solution for Hotel Management and Bookings. IdeoMetriX in collaboration with the Technoknowledge is also introducing coding and Robotics enabled IT curriculum for early ages from grade 1 to 8^th to enhance the critical thinking, creativity, problem solving and coding capabilities at younger ages. Under the project the team has trained more than 150 Tech fellows of Government Schools.

IdeoMetriX’s success is not just a result of hard work and dedication, but also a result of their focus on client-oriented and human-centric design. By understanding the needs of their clients and designing solutions that meet those needs in a user-friendly and intuitive way, the company has been able to establish a reputation for providing high-quality services. Additionally, their approach to design also emphasizes the importance of empathy and understanding the human experience, which has helped them to create designs that are not only functional but also emotionally resonant.

The company’s commitment to innovation is also a key factor in their success. By continuously pushing the boundaries of what is possible and experimenting with new technologies and techniques, IdeoMetriX has been able to stay ahead of the curve and offer services that are truly unique. Their development of in-house products is a great example of this. The company culture is also a significant contributor to their success, by fostering a work environment that encourages creativity, collaboration, and continuous learning, the company has been able to attract and retain top talent, and has built a team of individuals who are passionate about their work and dedication to achieving the company’s goals.

The success of IdeoMetriX serves as a powerful motivator for other entrepreneurs, highlighting the potential of government-private sector collaboration in promoting entrepreneurship and economic development. It’s a reminder that with a clear vision, willingness to take risks, and a commitment to hard work, anything is possible. Entrepreneurship is a powerful tool for creating positive change, and the success of companies like IdeoMetriX is a testament to the impact that one person, or a group of people, can make in the world.

What’s Tech Villages Initiative?

 The evolution of aptitude and perception is the driving force behind community development and economic expansion in society. Skill building is a significant tool to empower a population. Technology has lain beside every aspect of our life, giving rise to an easier, decent, and more diverse lifestyle. 

Tech Village is an endeavor underwritten by the Karakoram Area Development Organization (KADO), uConnect Technologies Pvt. Ltd and Special Communication Organization (SCO) to facilitate youth to unearth contemporary tech agilities. In confederation with the local community, both the enterprises inducted IT hubs in secluded neighborhoods of Gilgit-Baltistan to operate on the skill-building of the participants at their doorsteps.

The Camps:

Owing to the Tech Village undertaking, more than six IT camps are employed in Hunza and Nagar districts. With the assistance of the local community, several camps in various locales of Hunza and Nagar are already inducted which are currently functional as:

1. Tech Village Ghulkin
2. Tech Village Hoper Nagar
3. Tech Village Khanabad
4. Tech Village Karimabad
5. Tech Village Aliabad

The Skills

The primary assortment of the skill development project is completed. The participants ‌learned essentially numerous facets of digital marketing, content writing, graphic design, and video editing. Moreover, they are being exposed to ‌top freelancing platforms like Upwork and Fiverr to auction their skill into the international market.

Some of them are:

• Digital Marketing
• Social Media Marketing
• Search Engine Optimization
• Content Writing
• WordPress Website Development
• Graphic Design
• Video Creation and Editing
• Communication

The Impact

HARD WORK ALWAYS PAYS OFF! Today, all the partakers of Tech Villages are retailing their digital marketing services to local and the international call through media like Upwork and Fiverr at their doorsteps.

Over and above 70 projects from global clients are attained at Ghulkin center independently. The participants are operating on other substantial ventures in further camps, covering Aliabad and Karimabad Hunza.

Tech village is turning out to be a game-changer. The undertaking not only works for the youth to learn tech skills delivered their doorsteps but makes them able to earn promptly from the international market. The communal drive is working to curtail unemployment rate confrontations by extending online alternatives.

Furthermore, this tech-driven monetary prototype could have a marketable contribution to the regional economy and augment the financial predicament of the area. 

At a communal level, skill expansion in emerging markets benefits the prosperity of regional populations and ameliorates the ratio of unemployment in the vicinity. 

Prospective Initiatives

KADO and uConnect with fast and free internet connectivity from SCO are aspiring to sustain the Tech Villages venture in every locale of Gilgit-Baltistan. The contemplation is to ratify the regional lasses of Gilgit-Baltistan through skill advancement.

The world is now deliberately shifting from a typical economy toward a more surging digital economy. The freelance market currently contributes to the world’s economy through the direct and indirect inflow of revenue ascertained to uplift subsistence economies and open a new corridor for futuristic work and job paradigms.

 Keeping in view this fact, the Ministry of Information and Technology (MoIT) ensued a vision to procure a self-sustainable and self-empowered youth by acquainting them to the new realm of the freelance marketplace that has now exponentially amplified within the country and abroad.

An inclusive National Freelance Training Program (NFTP) was designed to make that happen. It is operational in all provinces across Pakistan, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, with 20 state-of-the-art centers across the country. It offers youth a great opportunity to unleash and anchor their skills on firm grounds with the help of exceptionally skilled trainers.

This would allow a person to enter a new market and sell his work using his newly acquired skills and knowledge. Not only this, but it connects to a global network of freelancers with different skills with miscellaneous customers. Not only amateur freelancers but also students with no skills can benefit and learn various skills from the opportunity. This free-of-cost training program entails 2000 charges at admission and is completely refundable with 80% attendance.

The main objectives of the program are as follows:

●       Reducing Unemployment

●       Youth Self-Sustainability

●       Create merit-based equal opportunities for all, notwithstanding gender, sect, or religion, especially for underprivileged areas.

●       Contribute to increasing the influx of foreign exchange through trained youth working on international platforms.

NFTP provides its students with a three-month training program that includes a variety of elements organized into three distinct domains:

1. Technical

●        Web development basics

●        A brief intro to programming languages

●        Introduction to databases

●        Theme building and development of websites through WordPress

2. Content Marketing and Advertising (Non-Technical)

●        Creating engaging and intensive content

●        Digital Marketing

●        Blogging

●        Lead generation and SEO

3. Creative Design

●        Creative logo design

●        Corporate identity kit

●        Adobe Suite

Students of the partner institution and individuals with 14 years of education are eligible to apply for the 3-month program (3 cohorts per year).

National Freelance Training Program, KIU, – fostering creativity, innovation, skills, and entrepreneurship

National Freelance Training Program, Gilgit is among the NFTP’s 20 state-of-the-art centers in partnership with the Karakoram International University, the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan, and the Special Communication Organization (SCO), providing a chance for the students to enable themselves to elevate their financial tier in the current rampant inflation streaks.

One example of the program’s success is Muzaffar Faqir, a student of the Economics Department from KIU who completed his training in the second batch from the National Freelancing and Telecommunication Program (NFTP). Just 8 months ago, he took the leap and started freelancing. He faced many challenges as a freelancer, but he was determined to

succeed. Through hard work and dedication, he quickly established himself as a top-rated freelancer on Upwork, earning $15,000 till now through his projects, which included working with international clients. But his success didn’t stop there, as he also landed a job as a Marketing Manager for a Canadian company. He has completed over 80 projects with international clients, proving that his skills and determination have led to his success. “I am very grateful for the training and opportunities provided by the NFTP, it has been a stepping stone for my career,” he said. This success story highlights the impact of the program on the lives of the students who complete it, providing them with the skills and opportunities needed to succeed in the freelance market. Top of Form

Bottom of FormMoreover, with 155 fresh trainees in the current cohort and 315 graduates, an estimated revenue of $63,836 USD (Rs 11.8 million) has likely been generated so far. Since its inception, it has triggered the interest of many students to get enrolled and polish their skills. Contrary to other companies, the institution is unique of its kind in many aspects;

●        It provides quality and exceptional service and facilities to students at a minimal cost.

●        KIU stands out as the primary beneficiary of the services and protocols.

●        Digitizing and skill enhancement opportunities for the students of KIU

It is indeed nourishing a more self-reliant youth while also encouraging youth to earn an income to support themselves and their families. A prognosis in terms of fair socio-economic conditions for the entrepreneurial regimen is foreseeable with the current endeavors of the initiative.