13/12/2025
The Business Incubation Centre (BIC) hosted “AgriThon 2025 – Cultivating Ideas for a Blue-Sky Future in Agriculture” at the CAS Auditorium, bringing together prominent academics, industry leaders, and aspiring agri-entrepreneurs to deliberate on innovation, collaborationns, and transformative solutions essential for the agriculture sector in Pakistan.
With coordination and support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Centre for Agriculture & Bio Sciences International (CABI), and the Institute of Business Management Sciences (IBMS), the two-day event featured a student start-up expo, tech product displays, inspiring talks, a structured panel discussion, and dedicated mentoring sessions. The participants included student start-up teams from the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF), and MNS-University of Agriculture, Multan.
The event began with a warm welcome by Dr. Hammad Badar, Director BIC, who underscored the critical role of creative thinking, innovation, and rigorous problem-solving in shaping the future of agriculture. Prof. Dr. Abdul Ghafoor, Director IBMS, delivered the keynote on “Agri Entrepreneurship”, focusing on market opportunities, the inherent potential of the youth demographic, and the global paradigm shift towards technology-driven agricultural practices.
The session dedicated to “Financing the Future of Agri-Entrepreneurship” was led by Muhammad Mohsin Muneeb Khan, Regional Manager Agriculture at the National Bank of Pakistan. Mr. Khan provided comprehensive details on the available banking facilities, mechanisms for risk sharing, the structures of loan instruments, and strategies for startups to manage financial complexities through disciplined planning.
A panel discussion entitled “Dream, Dare, Do: Entrepreneurial Journey and Challenges” was moderated by Dr Hammad Badar. The panellists, who included distinguished founders and ecosystem leaders, shared their real-life entrepreneurial journeys, failures, breakthroughs, and lessons. The panelists including Program Manager NICF Ms. Aimen Shahid, CEO Synergy Pharma Dr. Masud Sadiq Chaudhary, CEO DiGi khata Mr. Adnan Aslam, CEO SB Store Mr. Safdar Ali, and Mr. Muhammad Shahzab, Manager Green Upshot.
Student Startups also learned from hands-on mentoring sessions on Pitching and Communication Skills by Ms. Khadija Yaseen and Ms. Mubashra Saman, Networking, Partnerships and Team Building by Dr. Yousaf Malik, Product Development and Prototyping by Dr. Yawar Abbas, Financial Viability for Startups by Dr. Sahar Muneer, and Designing Business Model by Dr Burhan.
In the concluding vote of thanks, Dr Shakeel Ahmed. TA Team Lead for ADB-CABI affirmed that AgriThon 2025 successfully demonstrated the collective commitment of the BIC, ADB, CABI, and IBMS to nurture Pakistan’s next generation of agri innovators and to equip young minds with the essential knowledge, skill building, and network access required to translate systemic challenges into viable opportunities.