Punjab IT Board hosted the first ever National Freelancers Convention (NFC) on the 28th of March 2017 at the Arfa Software Technology Park, Lahore where more than five thousand people including freelancers, techies, entrepreneurs and want-a-preneurs, young professionals and industry veterans took part in this first of its kind event.
Back here in Karachi, we woke up to the Twitter trend that started as early as 8AM on a Tuesday morning!
NFC aimed to bring together the leading freelancers onto one platform that is to allow relevant stakeholders of freelancing community to interact and network with each other.
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Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif graced the opening ceremony, and inaugurated the flagship project ‘Chief Minister’s E-Rozgaar Training Program’, whereas the Keynote speakers from the convention included Dr. Umar Saif – Chairman PITB and Mr. Jahangir Khanzada the Provincial Sports Minister.
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Some of the industry experts to speak at the event were: Ahmad Bastway from International Business Development Manager IceHubs Global CIC; and Ms. Daria Ofman, Executive Manager Middle East Council for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (MCSBE).
More than 40 universities and 120 companies were present at the event that consisted of four power packed sessions:
- The Art of Blogging
- Building Efficient Payment Gateways for Freelancers
- Women in Tech: Bridging the Gender Divide
- Freelancing to Entrepreneurship; Opportunities and Challenges
Other sessions that were running in parallel included a WordPress Meetup, Crossover Pakistan’s Hiring Hackathon Tournament, Official Behance Portfolio Review, Facebook Developers Circle Meetup, Open Source Pakistan Meetup, Official Fiverr Community Meetup, technology expo, and an all-day networking opportunity for the attendees and exhibitors.
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The event concluded on a high note with Mr. Junaid Iqbal, MD Careem, handing out a surprise by Careem PAK, followed by Mr. Nabeel A. Qadeer, Director Enterprise Development and Entrepreneurship who delivered the closing address.
View all event photographs on the official Facebook page or follow #NFC2017!
Image source: PITB
