The Embassy of Australia in Viet Nam and HATCH! VENTURES – a social enterprise and startup incubator, jointly held a conference to boost startups in Da Nang on 7 October.

Staffers of Lozi, a start-up online food review community, at their office. Illustrative photo (Source: Tuoi Tre)

The event, the 1^st of its kind in Da Nang, attracted a total of 200 local start-uppers and students.

Addressing the event, Australian Deputy Ambassador to Viet Nam Layton Pike highlighted the friendship based on mutual assistance between Viet Nam and Australia, saying that the Australian government highly spoke of the efforts of HATCH! with support programmes for startups and startup investment in Viet Nam.

Pham Trung, Deputy Director of the Da Nang Business Incubator said the city has taken breakthrough steps to boost its startups, including establishing the nation’s first public-private partnership (PPP)-based business incubator, and organising annual startup events.

Da Nang has also launched a project on developing a startup ecosystem until 2020, with a vision that the city will become the startup and innovation hub of ASEAN region by 2030.

The project aims to develop a startup culture, and enhance the awareness amongst local young people about startups, while completing and issuing relevant policies.

Investment will be made in local business incubators and infrastructure for startups, and in developing a training system on startup.

Cooperation will also be forged to use more domestic and foreign resources in developing the startup ecosystem, with a focus on the PPP models.

(Source: VNA/ DA NANG Today)