Qatar Career Fair (QCF) has announced the launch of its fourth annual Istathmir competition in partnership with Bedaya Centre for Entrepreneurship and Career Development.Istathmir showcases and promotes Qatar’s growing culture of entrepreneurship in preparation for the Career Fair event. The competition encourages aspiring Qataris to consider the benefits of starting their own business as an alternative career path.For the first time, smaller Qatari businesses are invited to compete for the chance to showcase their products, services and recruitment benefits at QCF 2014. The 20 best applicants will have to demonstrate how their activities contribute to Qatar’s nascent career culture to a panel of QCF and Bedaya judges, who will then select 10 winners.Members of the public are also encouraged to take part by submitting their ideas for a new startup. Twenty of the most promising candidates will be invited to hone their business and presentation skills at a week-long training course. They will then pitch their plans to the panel, which will choose five winners to attend QCF 2014.“We believe in the Qatari youth and what they are capable of achieving, and the Istathmir competition encourages young Qataris to unleash their potential. Istathmir is in full support of the national development strategy and we at QCF aim to re-emphasise the importance of leadership and the role it plays in building the society,” said Abdulla al-Mansoori, director of QCF. “The competition represents a very important project as the business leadership and SME sector is rapidly growing. We believe that the youth’s contribution to this sector is vital,” said Saleh al-Khulaifi, general manager of Bedaya Centre. He asserted that participating in the competition will give the youth a chance to start a business that can back a strong economy, which will support Qatar National Vision 2030. Winners from both the business and individual categories will each be given a booth in the QCF “Startup Arena” to demonstrate their ideas to potential future employees, partners and investors. They will also participate in a series of talks about starting a business in Qatar, titled “My business - My career”.The application window opened yesterday (Nov 25) and judges would begin shortlisting candidates on January 16, 2014. The selection process will continue until February 2 and the winners will be informed on February 16. Qatar Career fair will take place in March.Anyone interested in participating can find out more at www.qatarcareerfair.com.qa