The Rural Youth Social Entrepreneurs Network (RYSEN) aims to promote social entrepreneurship among disadvantaged rural youth in Pakistan. It will establish local networks of young social entrepreneurs who receive training, funding, and mentoring to start their own enterprises and create service provider networks. This will empower rural youth to lead grassroots innovation, gain job skills, and improve their economic prospects, addressing Pakistan's challenge of unemployed and uneducated youth through a sustainable model of social enterprise development.

1. RURAL YOUNG SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS
NETWORK (RYSEN)
Promoting Youth-led Grassroots Innovation

2. Challenge
• Pakistan houses the largest number of youth in its history. It has the world’s fifth largest 15- to
24-year-old population. 2/3 the total population (68.36%) is concentrated below the age of 30.
• Pakistan has a relatively large proportion (32%) of uneducated youth mostly living in rural areas
with no vocational and life skills, who end up in elementary occupations or remain either
unemployed or inactive.
• It is a great demographic opportunity. This demographic opportunity is turning into a
demographic disaster due to poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and fragile governance structures.
• The future of the Pakistan is based on our ability to reach out and equip the disadvantaged rural
youth of Pakistan with the social entrepreneurship education and skills to realize their potential-
and create the jobs for them to unleash their potential. In short, investing in disadvantaged rural
youth is essential for the survival of Pakistan.

3. Vision and Mission
Vision
Transformed disadvantaged rural youth from victims to social entrepreneurs.
Mission
Supporting disadvantaged rural youth to realize their dreams through social
entrepreneurship trainings, mentoring, physical and social infrastructural
support and financial assistance.

4. Solution
• RYSEN will be set up at union council level to inspire young people from disadvantaged
rural backgrounds to become social entrepreneurs and business entrepreneurs.
• RYSEN will be run by seven magnificent young people from disadvantaged rural
backgrounds who have a specific skill or knowledge to offer.
• Each young person in the RYSEN will be provided social entrepreneurship training and
financial assistance (Nabi Fund) to create his/her own youth service providers network of
at-least five members for a period of 12 months.
• The key activities of RYSEN members will be identifying, training, mentoring, connecting
and engaging rural youth in their area of expertise such as education, health, information
technology, agriculture, livestock and skills to branch out their services at village and
community levels.

5. A twin track approach will be followed by
the RYSEN. The members of RYSEN will
not only establish their own enterprises but
also identify, train, engage and mentor
youth from villages to branch out their
services to villages and communities.
Each RYSEN member will create a service
provider network comprising of at-least 5
members in his/her area of specialization
to promote youth-led grassroots social
innovation.

6. Theory of Change
• Young people from disadvantaged rural backgrounds are finding it very hard to find decent
jobs as there are almost no jobs available for them. They are left with no option other than
to start their own enterprises.
• Since there are no institutions available at local level which can provide social
entrepreneurship training and education, physical and social infrastructure and access to
funding to these young people, the NRSP and YES have decided to launch this project to
fill the huge gap existing in the area of social enterprise development as an option for
economic survival of disadvantaged rural young people.
• The project will be a good way of developing enterprise and employability skills and of
promoting entrepreneurship among disadvantaged rural youth.

7. RYSEN Operational Model

8. Methodology
• Open Sessions in Union Councils
• Formation of Contact Groups
• RYSEN Competition
• Selection of Best Ideas from the Different Fields
• Formation of Rural Youth Social Entrepreneurs Network (RYSEN)
• Training and Financial Assistance of RYSEN Members
• Creation of Service Providers Network by RYSEN Members

9. Social Impact
• Moved from a traditional “charity” approach of “helping the disadvantaged” youth
to a transformational, “social enterprise” approach of empowering and motivating
youth to take control of their future prosperity.
• Established first network of rural young social entrepreneurs from disadvantaged
backgrounds.
• Provided well-designed training and employment opportunities to rural youth from
disadvantaged backgrounds.
• Encouraged diverse youth-led grassroots innovation for sustainable development.

10. Social Impact
• Moved from a traditional “charity” approach of “helping the disadvantaged” youth
to a transformational, “social enterprise” approach of empowering and motivating
youth to take control of their future prosperity.
• Established first network of rural young social entrepreneurs from disadvantaged
backgrounds.
• Provided well-designed training and employment opportunities to rural youth from
disadvantaged backgrounds.
• Encouraged diverse youth-led grassroots innovation for sustainable development.