News Analysis |
The Telenor Youth Forum’s 2017-2018 programme will commence this week at the DTAC (Total Access Communication Public Company)headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, where Pakistani prodigies Safa Iftikhar and Sara Waqar will be representing Pakistan amongst a delegation of young leaders from 11 nations.
In the form of teams, these delegates will pitch four new services to Nobel Peace Center’s Executive Director, Liv Torres, and Telenor Group’s Chief Financial Officer, Jorgen Rostrup, among others.
Mobile industry can have significant impact in achieving the SDGs. Through responsible business conduct we want to connect the many to the internet, not the few.
The winning team will receive USD 15,000 in funding to implement their proposed service, with an aim to reduce inequalities in accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goal #10. The teams will also showcase their services in a digital exhibition which will be attended by Telenor Group management and representatives from the Nobel Peace Center.
Irfan Wahab Khan, CEO Telenor Pakistan, said: ‘TYF has had some inspiring young leaders emerge from Pakistan over the years to not only represent our country on a global platform but create a positive impact on society at large. Our youth has immense potential and we’re proud to have TYF serving as a platform to nurture their passion and talent,’
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‘Our delegates, Safa & Sara, are geared to make a difference in the world using this platform and it is exciting to see brilliant young minds converge again at the TYF platform to create inventive solutions to tackle global challenges and reduce inequalities.’
The Bangkok finale follows six months of the delegates developing their service ideas, conducting user research and prototyping their services since they were given their challenges during Nobel Peace Prize week in Oslo at the Telenor Youth Forum’s kickoff in December 2017.
Earlier this month, Telenor Pakistan hosted a Sustainability Conference to revisit the progress of and pledge commitment to, the UN Sustainable Development Goal no. 10 ‘Reduced Inequalities’, at its campus 345. The event focused on Telenor’s sustainability efforts, its vision of empowering societies and sharing insights to accelerate progress on United Nations SDGs, Global Village Space reported earlier.
Our youth has immense potential and we’re proud to have TYF serving as a platform to nurture their passion and talent,’
The conference featured keynotes and a panel discussion by industry experts focused on challenges related to inequality, and how the public and private sectors can work together to enable our people and achieve socio-economic growth.
The event brought together Ms. Anusha Rahman, Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecom, WencheAgerup, EVP and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Telenor Group, Irfan Wahab Khan, CEO Telenor Pakistan, Ignacio Artaza, Country Director UNDP Pakistan, Cristian Munduate, Deputy Country Representative UNICEF Pakistan and senior representatives from Planning Commission SDGs Support Unit, NUST, Plan International, and Telenor Pakistan employees.
Read more: Telenor Pakistan’s pledge towards ‘Reduced Inequalities’ accentuated at Sustainability Conference
The company is also extending its digital products and services to the people in the far-flung areas of Pakistan, through USF projects, to give them access to quality communication &data services, and mobile banking.
“Supporting Sustainable Development Goals across our global markets is a core theme for Telenor”, said Wenche Agerup, EVP and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Telenor Group while speaking at the conference. “Sustainability at Telenor is how we do business and Telenor Group, with its vision of Empowering Societies, has fully integrated UN SDGs to create real value for the regions it serves. Mobile industry can have a significant impact in achieving the SDGs. Through responsible business conduct, we want to connect the many to the internet, not the few.