First-ever SCO Startup Forum to be launched on 27th October, a boost for 'Startup India'

The first-ever Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Startup Forum will be launched on October 27, 2020, ahead of the SCO trade ministers meeting on October 28, 2020. The forum will lay the foundation for multilateral cooperation and engagement among the SCO Member States to develop and hone their startup ecosystems, collectively.

Innovation and Startups are going to be the key focus area of SCO Heads of Government meeting on November 30, 2020, that will be hosted by India. During the meet, the forum is likely to identify areas of cooperation by launching multiple entrepreneurial activities like startup showcases through a dedicated virtual platform, mobilizing capital for startups, sharing of best practices, procuring social innovations, multilateral incubator programs and knowledge exchange workshops among others.

Startup India in a tweet has said, "Participate in the SCO Startup Forum to witness the innovations on an international platform & learn about the global initiatives for startups! https://scostartupforum.live/registration/ @MEAIndia @EOIBeijing @indembastana @IndEmbDushanbe @IndEmbMoscow @amb_tashkent @IndiaInKyrgyz @IndiainPakistan."

It will aid to understand the cultural and economic features of the startup ecosystem in the SCO Member States. In the run-up to the launch of SCO Startup Forum, a virtual SCO preparatory Seminar and a workshop were also organized by India. Around 40 Indian Missions roped in to further augment Startup India efforts.

Around 40 Indian Missions roped in to further augment Startup India efforts. India is currently the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world with over 35,000 startups, close to 25 per cent of which are core technology startups operating in areas of AI, Robotics, Cloud Computing, IoT, Digital Health, Financial & Education Technology.

The 'Startup India' has launched 10 bilateral bridges since its inception and has helped many technology-based startups to expand their businesses to global markets. Government has roped in around 40 Indian missions to further augment the efforts undertaken by the 'Startup India' program by exploiting the opportunities across the geographies.

As part of planned SCO ministerial meetings in the run-up to SCO Heads of Government meeting, Ministers of Law and Justice of SCO member states have met on Friday where they acknowledged the need for cooperation in alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. In the view of the coronavirus pandemic, they emphasized the high relevance of mutual exchange of legal information on counteraction to the spread of the pandemic.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation, comprising of 8 member nations namely the Republic of India, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the People's Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The SCO focuses on strengthening mutual trust and neighbourliness among the member states, promoting their effective cooperation in politics, trade, economy, research, technology and culture, as well as in education, energy, transport, tourism, environmental protection, and other areas; making joint efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security and stability in the region; and moving towards the establishment of a democratic, fair and rational new international political and economic order.

India's Proposal for SWG on Startups and Innovation

India has proposed to host the Special Working Group (SWG) on Startups and Innovation this year, chaired by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. This Group is proposed to launch and organize the SCO Startup Forum in the meeting of the heads of states in October 2020. The Startup Forum shall aim to promote startups and improve the startup ecosystems in the SCO Member States.

In line with the vision of the SCO Startup Forum, a Preparatory Seminar was organized on August 11, 2020, to discuss the possible areas of collaborations. This seminar was attended by all the 8 Member Nations. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) proposed to engage the startups in all these countries through various initiatives such as corporate and investor engagements, knowledge-sharing workshops, programs to procure social innovations, etc. DPIIT also proposed to conduct workshops on sharing best practices among the member nations to enable cross-border learning's in improving the startup ecosystems.