In an attempt to develop the tech community and identify promising start-ups in the provinces, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has launched a key component of a new program aimed at fostering ICT-based innovations and entrepreneurship among Filipinos.
The program kicked off its first leg of workshops in Lingayen on May 2, 2014.
The initiative is part of the government’s Seed.ph program, which aims to boost the development of the country’s start-up ecosystem and target at least 50 local start-ups based in the Philippines with average annual revenues of at least P10 million each by the end of 2016.
The program, in turn, is a part of the bigger Philippine Development Plan 2016, which aims to achieve a competitive industry and services sector.
The recently released “Philippine Start-up Report” authored by renowned Silicon Valley start-up personality Bowei Gai has indicated the huge potential of the Philippines in becoming a start-up hub.
The report cites the country as being the fastest growing economy in Asia and having the following qualities: investment grade status, low operation costs, English-speaking majority, and large local Westernized market with minimal business competition.
According to the report, the Philippines has the strengths to take advantage of becoming a prominent IT community that hosts high-valued local, as well as international, start-ups.
The Seed.ph program will be bringing the workshops to six cities of different regions to discuss basic concepts and methods applied in building start-ups.
Prominent start-up industry movers and founders will discuss start-up basics and will aim to inspire young audiences to seriously consider technopreneurship as a career.
ICT Office executive director Louis Casambre, in one of his speeches in a start-up event last year, said: “The budding local start-up community has been a catalyst in creating efficient solutions, as well as inspiring change in the country. We see the impact that start-ups like Facebook and Google have in our everyday life. This movement is now admirably being led by the youth who are strongly adept to current technological trends and have the drive to create positive changes in society.”
The start-up workshop sessions include topics on start-up innovations and trends, start-up ecosystem and support, intellectual property concepts, pitching basics and fire pitches, and breakout sessions.
The Seed.ph workshops targets participants from different universities especially students in the fields of computer studies and business management, professors and school administrators, and representatives from the private businesses and local government units
