ICT Division’s iDEA project signs 4 MoUs to develop entrepreneur culture

Highlights:

• The IBA and iDEA projects will share experiences on AI, machine learning and big data
• The iDEA project and IIT will jointly organise ICT-based: competitions, project showcasing, hackathons, Olympiads, etc.
• Brac University's CED will give the iDEA project's startups access to Brac University's Business Incubation Center
• The two sides will jointly assist each other in: training, partnerships, joint ventures, venue support, plus fellowship programs with the USA and Australia.

The lnnovation Design and Entrepreneurship Academy (iDEA) project of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with four organisations in the country, on Tuesday, to develop a startup ecosystem in Bangladesh.

The iDEA project signed the MoUs with: the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) and Institute of Information Technology (IIT) of Dhaka University, the Department of Computer Engineering and Technology (CSE) of the Jessore University of Science and Technology (JUST) and the Center for Entrepreneurship Development (CED) of Brac University.

The memoranda were signed at the iDEA project's Conference Hall in the ICT Tower in Agargaon. ICT Division Senior Secretary NM Zeaul Alam was present at the ceremony, said a press release from the iDEA project.

Kazi Hosne Ara, deputy project director of the iDEA project, signed the MoU with the representative of the CED, and Syed Mojibul Haque, director of the iDEA project, signed the MoUs with the representatives of the three other organisations.

Dhaka University IBA Associate Professor Khaled Mahmud, IIT Director Mohammad Shafiul Alam Khan, JUST's CSE Department Chairman Prof Syed Md Galib, and Senior Research Fellow of CED and Assistant Professor of Brac Business School Shamim Ehsanul Haque signed the MoUs on behalf of their respective organisations.

The MoUs are aimed at jointly conducting various trainings, mentoring, campaigns, awards, fellowships, seminars, and research, as well as entrepreneurship-related initiatives. They also aim to engage researchers plus industry and trade veterans as resource persons in various activities of the iDEA project.

The IBA and iDEA projects will work together through partnerships and joint ventures, including sharing experiences on AI, machine learning and big data.

In addition, the iDEA Project and IIT will jointly organise: ICT-based competitions, project showcasing, hackathons, Olympiads, etc.

Meanwhile, the signing of the MoU with Brac University's Center for Entrepreneurship Development gives the iDEA project's startups access to Brac University's Business Incubation Center. The potential projects of Brac University will also get a chance to use the co-working spaces and labs of the iDEA project.

In addition, the two sides will jointly assist each other in: training, partnerships, joint ventures, venue support, plus fellowship programs with the USA and Australia.

The iDEA project has so far provided pre-seed grants to 170 entrepreneurs. The MoUs aim to help startups transform their innovative ideas into sustainable business models by providing mentoring and training. This will create a viable startup ecosystem in the country that will play a significant role in creating a better business environment in the future, said Syed Mojibul Haque, director and additional secretary of iDEA Project.