IGNITE Istanbul Conference to Address Economic Resilience in Türkiye and Jordan
SPARK, in collaboration with Qatar Fund for Development and Qatar Charity, is thrilled to announce the upcoming IGNITE Istanbul conference taking place on Thursday 16th May between 09:00 – 16:00, at the Elite World Grand Hotel in Istanbul, Türkiye. This full-day, multi-stakeholder conference aims to delve into the critical topic of building economic resilience among youth and business-owners across Türkiye and Jordan.
In recent years, our economic landscape has been significantly altered by challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, devastating earthquakes in Türkiye, and ongoing conflicts and economic downturn across the Middle East. These challenges have disproportionately affected small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly those led by refugees and women, resulting in job losses and economic instability.
For the past four years, SPARK and the Qatar Fund for Development have been collaborating with partners across Türkiye and Jordan to address these challenges, focusing on safeguarding jobs, enhancing business resilience among SMEs, and creating new pathways to employment for young people.
The IGNITE Istanbul conference serves as a platform for practitioners to learn from the outcomes of these initiatives, engage in discussions and further develop solutions for robust economic growth in the region. Attendees will include a diverse group of thought leaders, stakeholders, and experts from various sectors, including government, private sector, investors, entrepreneurs, and higher education institutions.
The event will feature keynote speeches from high level delegates, as well as three panel discussions on the topics of ‘Building Business Resilience during Crisis’, ‘Digitalisation: Opportunities for Inclusive Growth’ and ‘Fostering Entrepreneurial Skills for Resilience’ feature prominent practitioners, experts and development stakeholders including Ms. Louisa Vinton, Resident Representative for UNDP Turkey; Mr. Ishrat ULLAH, Head Of Humanitarian Department at Qatar Charity; Ms. Gülbin Çalışkantürk, Deputy Secretary General at Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce, among others.
In addition, the audience can look forward to contributions by many successful refugee and women-led startups, investors and entrepreneurship ecosystem partners. The IGNITE Istanbul conference represents a crucial step towards fostering economic resilience and creating sustainable opportunities for youth, women, and refugees in Türkiye and Jordan. We invite all stakeholders to join us in this important dialogue and collective effort to shape a brighter future for the region.
For more information and registration details, please visit IGNITE Istanbul.