Arts and crafts to paint picture of prosperity

Training

Xu, the entrepreneur from Heilongjiang, expressed some concerns about her startup, even though she spoke highly of the dynamic market in Tibet.

"Some parts of the market are not as regulated as those in large cities outside the region," said the 33-year-old, who arrived in Lhasa in 2015 after quitting her job in Beijing.

"For example, I had to explain the region's startup policies and rules to my partners and even local residents when I signed contracts with them, because they didn't know the basics of running a business. It doubled the time taken."

Thubthan Khedrub, the professor, echoed Xu's words, saying some local people had heard about the policies related to startups, but they had no idea how to apply them to their businesses.

In the report, he and the other authors noted that some Tibetans who wanted to start businesses lacked relevant knowledge, and some local college graduates had no specific plans before they founded their companies.

To resolve these problems, Thubthan Khedrub suggested the government should further explain the policies to local people or update them promptly, provide more financial support to young entrepreneurs and create a better business environment by offering people more startup-related training.

Xu said, "Gaining more knowledge about business management is not only a necessity for newcomers, but also for entrepreneurs like myself, whose businesses are in the formative stages."

She added that she felt more optimistic after taking part in classes arranged by Tihho, which has brought Peking University's Entrepreneurs' Training Camp, a national-level startup platform, to Lhasa.

The aim is to encourage local people by inviting university professors and entrepreneurs to share their experiences and teach business management classes.

According to Fang, almost 1,000 young entrepreneurs in Lhasa - many of whom are local residents age 20 to 35 - have taken part in 50 training sessions at the camp so far.

"I hope the training will not only promote the market for Tibetan culture, but also help drive developments in more sectors in the region, such as technology and agriculture," he said.