Here - Start-up Kashmir!

54
The importance of BAS/BDS for young start-up entrepreneurs in
Kashmir
The SKYE Baseline Survey findings suggest that there is currently a general lack of knowledge
and awareness on how to start and run a business among young Kashmiri people.
Increasing the degree and quality of business assistance a young start-up entrepreneur receives
in the early stages of his or her entrepreneurial journey increases the likelihood of
success and survival of the enterprise. Business assistance and support (BAS), also often
referred to as Business development services (BDS) 1 , are generally defined as: “services
that improve the performance of the enterprise, its access to markets, and its ability to compete”
. 2
The SKYE Project has
adopted a definition of BDS
as formal and informal nonfinancial
services that can
help young entrepreneurs
starting up their business
transform their fledgling
ventures into successful enterprises.
BDS helps startup
and existing businesses
become more profitable
by assisting them in: 1) effectively
developing and
creating quality products,
2) accessing higher value
markets, 3) efficiently managing
their business, and
4) improving and building their business in general. BDS can include such support as:
training, market support, consulting, advocacy, access to technology, business information,
business linkages, and infrastructure development. It includes other non-financial support
services like mentoring, support networks, business clubs, and incubators – that are particularly
useful and effective in helping young start-up entrepreneurs to succeed.
In addition to the normal challenges that start-ups face, businesses in Kashmir face a number
of unique constraints. In a place like the Kashmir Valley, where conflict has damaged infrastructure,
scared away investment, and reduced both social and human capital, BDS for
youth start-up entrepreneurs is very important. Over the past two decades, the Kashmiri
private sector has suffered a loss of entrepreneurial expertise, networks and customers.
In Kashmir’s unstable and unpredictable environment, youth entrepreneurs urgently need
support to obtain finance, develop and maintain stable business networks and contact with
customers and suppliers, and in the overall planning and management of their enterprises.
Given the low levels of entrepreneurship education and awareness in Kashmir, BDS for
Kashmiri youth start-up entrepreneurs is particularly important to help them avoid failure
and to realize their full potential.
1 The terms Business Assistance and Support (BAS) and Business Development Services (BDS) are often used interchangeably,
but sometimes differ, in the literature. The SKYE Project treats and uses the terms BAS and BDS synonymously.
2 Committee of Donor Agencies for Small Enterprise Development, UNDP, 2001
Youth Entrepreneurship in Kashmir: Challenges and Opportunities