Kolkata: US Consulate, KIIT Technology Business Incubator join to host three-day Regional Startup Network workshop

The workshop also aims to strengthen linkages between the startups through ecosystem partnerships to foster greater economic prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.

The RSN program aims to provide a nurturing entrepreneurship ecosystem, helping startups gain valuable insights, expand their network, and showcase their ideas to a global audience.

The program has been designed to facilitate regional engagement and interconnectedness for a strong Indo-Pacific regional economy.

Speaking at the inaugural event, U.S. Consul General Melinda Pavek said, “The program provides a nurturing entrepreneurship ecosystem, helping startups gain valuable insights, expand their network, and showcase their ideas to a global audience."

"By increasing cross-border collaborations between startups, accelerating market linkages, and providing investor access, RSN aims to ensure a sustained growth trajectory for startups in the region,” she said.

She also shared the entrepreneurial journey of her parents while motivating the budding entrepreneurs who were participating in the event.

She said: "The United States is a nation built by entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is at the heart of the American spirit in President Joe Biden-led administration that is calling loudly for diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in all public endeavors."

In his address, Mrutyunjay Suar, DG R&D & Innovation KIIT and CEO KIIT-TBI, said, “The Regional Startup Network Program is an unique initiative taken by the U.S. Consulate Kolkata that follows a structured path of first building capacities of the startups in their home countries and then provides a launch platform to leverage cross cultural exposure for deeper understanding of the similar geographical markets and access to larger funding bases, while constantly building on their entrepreneurial skill base with progressive degree of complexity."

He said: "It would be hailed a landmark program that has set the tone for the development of cross-country programs for enhanced scale of impact."

He said: "The Startups that are a part of the first cohort showcase the burgeoning community and the collaborations established between them are indicative of the true success of the program.”

The Regional Startup Network is an entrepreneurship development program that provided access to stage-wise learning workshops, online social networking platform, investor exposure, and an opportunity to network and collaborate with startups from the partnering countries.

The program consisted of a 20-hour certified online entrepreneurship course, followed by a two-day formative workshop for the top 20 startups selected from India, Bhutan, Nepal , and Bangladesh, and a three-day advanced workshop in Kolkata for the top 20 startups selected from the formative workshops.

The top five startups from each country will make pitches to an expansive investor panel at the advanced workshop on Saturday, Apr 1, 2023. 

The program has engaged more than 350 established young entrepreneurs with a robust network of innovators, mentors, investors, funders, and accelerators, through diverse products and services.

Workshops in India, Nepal, and Bhutan have resulted in six cross-border business linkages, and 12 institutional partnerships, including one with the Ministry of Economic Affairs in Bhutan.

The event was attended by Surekha Routray, head-social incubation , KIIT – TBI; Vishnu S Baldwa, managing director, Indorama; Ashok Dhar, former president, petroleum business; Mrutyunjay Suar, chief executive officer, KIIT- TBI.

What did some of the participants say?

Md Nazmul Islam, Managing Director and CEO,  Fabric Lagbe, told IBNS,"For the next three days, we will like to interact with participants from other nations and keep learning from them."

"This workshop will help me in connecting with people from four countries and this is a very positive thing for me and my company. I am able to network with people from four nations. Additionally, this workshop is also giving me an opportunity to meet with excellent mentors who are giving me remarkable ideas and suggestions," Md Nazmul Islam said.

Rinzin Wangmo, who is representing Leki Textiles of Bhutan, told IBNS: "I am looking forward to the workshop as it will be very much beneficial for us and we are getting a chance to meet participants from neighbouring nations. This workshop is also giving me a chance to meet senior mentors from the industry. We hope we will be able to build a good network through the workshop."

Speaking to IBNS, Bini Bajracharya, founder of Abir Designs Hub from Nepal, said: "I am expecting to learn a lot of aspects of doing business from this workshop. We started our business three years back and during this period I have been learning the art of conducting business quite nicely. I also believe that I need to learn a lot as I move forward with the company."

She said that despite facing challenges she continued her company during the 'tough' COVID-19 phase.

"We recovered to a certain extent after COVID-19 but in Nepal Dengue also created a lot of troubles for us. At one point in time, we were not growing as much as we were expecting. Today, we are slowly moving to the path of recovery," she said.

Some key points about the workshop:

300 startups had registered across the four countries – India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh for the events leading to Kolkata workshop.

The formative workshop for India was conducted in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, in August 2022, which saw 20 startups from India participate, learn from esteemed mentors and pitch to business experts, among whom five startups were selected for the Advanced Workshop.

The formative workshop for Nepal was conducted in Kathmandu, Nepal, in September 2022, which saw 20 startups from Nepal participate, learn from esteemed local mentors and pitch to business experts, among whom five startups were selected for the Advanced Workshop.

The final formative workshop for Bangladesh was conducted in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in January 2023, which saw 20 startups from Bangladesh participate, learn from esteemed local mentors and pitch to business experts, among whom five startups were selected for the Advanced Workshop.

The selected Top 20 startups, five from each country, are now in Kolkata for the 3-day intensive Advanced Workshop.

Selected five startups from the workshop will be added for the Nexus Program in New Delhi.

The four major investors who are part of the event are Ankur Mehta (entrepreneur and Director of Investment and Portfolio at Upaya Social Ventures), Deepak Daftari (Domain Consultant, Angel Investor, and Mentor with over 15 years of experience in stealth acquisitions of desired Domain Name Brands),  Ashok Suyal (a professional with a blend of social, startups, and corporate sectors with varied global experience of working with Fortune 500 companies, multilateral institutions, and startups) and Vikas Sood (Director-Nexus at the U.S Embassy, where he leads an innovation hub and business incubator that showcases American and Indian entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology commercialization).

(Reporting and Images by Supriyo Hazra/IBNS)