Fifth Shanghai Cooperation Organisation startup forum meet in Jan next year

New Delhi, Mar 21 (PTI) The fifth meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation startup forum will be held in January next year, the commerce and industry ministry said on Thursday.

The initiative is aimed at promoting startup interactions among the SCO member states, fostering an environment conducive to innovation, and inspiring young talent to develop innovative solutions.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a eight-member multilateral organisation, established on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China. Its members are China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, India, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.

The ministry said that the fourth edition of the SCO Startup Forum was organised on March 19 here.

“Going forward, India will host the second meeting of the SWG in November 2024 and SCO Startup Forum 5.0 in January 2025,” it said.

The members created a Special Working Group (SWG) for Startups and Innovation in 2022 with an aim to foster collaboration among SCO member states, to not only benefit the startup ecosystem, but also accelerate regional economic development.

In 2023, after multiple rounds of meetings chaired by DPIIT (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade), the member states decided to approve and adopt the regulations of the SWG to be permanently chaired by India in SCO.

It added that the startup engagements are organised by India with the objective of empowering the local startup ecosystems in the SCO member states and providing value to startups through mentoring and enabling access to investor and corporate engagement activities.