KATHMANDU, JULY 25
A conference titled 'Establishing Business Incubation Centre' in a bid to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Nepal was held here today.
The one-day conference was organised in coordination and collaboration between the Ministry of Industries, Commerce and Supplies (MoICS) Nepal, Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FNCCI): Startup and Innovation Committee, PUM Netherlands, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and Antarprerana Pvt Ltd.
Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Dilendra Prasad Badu pledged to provide support to every sector working towards innovative entrepreneurship in Nepal through easing of the associated policies.
"The government is focused on building entrepreneurship ecosystem and the programmes and policies have also mentioned about promoting innovative ideas and entrepreneur culture in the country," Badu said.
The government has announced through budget to build incubation centres in seven provinces and also allocated the budget for it but it is insufficient, he said, adding, "Hence, with conferences like this, the private sectors and other related stakeholders could assist the government in realising the project."
He also stressed that the Startup Policy of the government facilitates strengthening entrepreneurial ecosystems in Nepal.
Representing the private sector, Shekhar Golchha, president of FNCCI, highlighted the importance of infrastructure to promote incubators and the need to portray business opportunities in Nepal with greater emphasis on production.
Golchha informed that FNCCI has also been promoting SMEs and start-ups through the campaign of '50 businesses and 50 mentors' to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Similarly, Cees Schoenmakers, senior expert from PUM Netherland, expressed commitment to support Nepal's entrepreneurial ecosystem through the expertise held by PUM on incubator.
He further emphasised on the collaborative model of academia, industry and government.
The conference also witnessed the signing of memorandum of understanding (MOU) between PUM Netherlands and FNCCI: Startup and Innovation Committee.
A version of this article appears in the print on July 26, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
