Start-up to start-up collaboration amongst BIMSTEC countries holds potential: Goyal

Start-up to start-up collaboration amongst India and other BIMSTEC countries holds immense potential as it can bring together young minds in the region and take innovations, inventions and research & development to the next level, Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said.

Speaking at the inaugural session of Prarambh’, a two-day virtual global summit on start-ups, Goyal called upon Indian investors to look at BIMSTEC (The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) region for making investments and increasing engagement with start-ups through mentoring and support.

“India has now become one of the fastest growing start-up ecosystems in the world…. ‘Prarambh’ will further strengthen this ecosystem by enabling exchange of ideas and inspiring our entrepreneurs to innovate and realise their dreams,” Goyal said.

Leaders from all BIMSTEC countries, which include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand, participated in the inaugural session on Friday.

New journey

Goyal said the partnership among BIMSTEC countries will take start-ups to the forefront of a new India, new world, and new neighbourhood in the new normal. He expressed hopes that the summit will mark the beginning of a new journey growing beyond government to government and business to business collaborations.

The two-day long virtual summit will bring together over 200 speakers from around the world and India, facilitate discussions on technologies, innovation, robust policies, and initiatives, enable government and international organisations to share their views and encourage youth to innovate. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the summit on Saturday.

India has over 41,000 start-ups registered with the government but there are many more that are working at the grassroots level and doing good work. “True talent lies in our villages and towns,” he said.

Tenzin Lekphell, Secretary-General, BIMSTEC, said the economy, jobs, livelihood, business, trade and commerce have been badly affected due to the Covid pandemic, and start-ups provide a ray of hope with a capacity to innovate and respond quickly to any problem. He called upon member-countries to provide policy support and come together to help start-ups.

Lekphell suggested that such conclaves must be held annually and a start-up hub be set up in the BIMSTEC Secretariat.