The delegation of Startup Estonia and the “Garage 48” Acceleration Center, established upon the initiative of the Estonian government, got acquainted with the “INNOLAND” Incubation and Acceleration Center of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Wide information on operating Co-working, Incubation, Acceleration and IT Training, as well as the startups residing within the center, was delivered to the guests.
Then, the Memorandum of Collaboration was signed between parties.
The Memorandum of Cooperation involves the establishment of an entrepreneurial support ecosystem as well as the creation and development of investor opportunities in the relevant regions for local technology startups. Furthermore, it covers the adoption of mutually agreed measures such as an effective exchange of incubation and acceleration programs and exchange of information on the attraction of local and foreign investors and etc.
According to the agreement reached within the memorandum signed with the "Startup Estonia" Center, the initial assessment of the regional applications sent to the “Startup Estonian Visa” program will be implemented in Azerbaijan. Startups applied to the relevant program from the regional countries such as Russia, Georgia, Mongolia, Iran, and Afghanistan will be initially assessed by the “INNOLAND” Incubation and Acceleration Center. Only startups that have successfully completed the initial stage will be able to move to the next stage of the program. This will play a significant role in attracting regional start-ups and projects to our country and increasing the success potential of the startup ecosystem.
The “Startup Estonian Visa” Program was established in 2017 on the joint initiative of the Estonian Startup Committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Estonia. The main goal of the program is to facilitate the entry of successful startups and projects of non-EU countries to Estonia. Thus, successful startups sent their applications to the “Startup Estonian Visa” Program are provided with a special code through which the applicants and their team members may obtain a permit to live up to 5 years in Estonia.
“INNOLAND” residents successfully represented at the Azerbaijan International Investment Forum
Residents of the "INNOLAND" Incubation and Acceleration Center under the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan participated at the “ASAN Service” stand within the framework of the 1st Azerbaijan International Investment Forum.
Startups "Convitsa", "Dovotes", and "Enverson", established through university collaboration within the “Skills for the Future” project, presented their innovative solutions and projects to local and international visitors.
High-level guests and officials were introduced to the technological innovations presented by the startups and highly appreciated their potential to enter international markets. Guests were also informed about the activities of “ASAN Service”, its innovative citizen services, achievements in digital solutions, and opportunities for international cooperation.
The Azerbaijan International Investment Forum serves as an important platform for showcasing the economic and technological potential of countries located at the strategic crossroads of East and West, as well as for exchanging knowledge and experience on new global competitiveness paradigms.
For participating companies and startups, the forum provided unique opportunities to establish high-level connections, sign strategic agreements, and build new partnerships.
Bakcell, the First Mobile Operator and the Fastest Mobile Internet Provider of Azerbaijan signed a cooperation agreement with the INNOLAND Incubation and Acceleration Center of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of Azerbaijan.
At the official signing ceremony, held on December 20th at the INNOLAND Incubation and Acceleration Center, Bakcell CEO Nikolai Beckers has pointed out that application of innovations and supporting startups is one of the main priorities of Bakcell strategy: “It is a known fact that Bakcell is one of the first companies in the country to support various projects aimed at development of startups. Our “AppLab” incubation center is one of the rare environments where some of the country’s most interesting projects are accumulated. I’m confident that our cooperation with the newly opened INNOLAND center will contribute largely to development of the country’s entire startup ecosystem and will become one of the most successful partnerships in the area of innovations”.
Director of the "Innovation Center” Tagi Taghi-Zade spoke about the importance of this cooperation, being a public-private partnership. It was noted that the main goal of this partnership is to support entrepreneurship ecosystems for technology startups in our country and to implement high-level cooperation that serves the needs of emerging technology entrepreneurs. Cooperation between parties will have a great significance in terms of establishing a startup culture in Azerbaijan, developing a spirit of innovative entrepreneurship and startup ecosystems, supporting existing initiatives, creating conditions for the application of innovative initiatives in the current economic processes of the country, forming a motivating factor for the development and creation of various discoveries and other innovations.
It should be noted that INNOLAND is an incubation, acceleration and research center created to develop the private sector, promote innovation and expand the startup movement both in Azerbaijan and beyond its borders. INNOLAND consists of the Co-working, Incubation, Acceleration and IT Training and Education Center.
The AppLab program of Bakcell will from now on function as an Acceleration Center to continue supporting the startup project in a broader format. Since the year 2014, local startups and developers engaged in creation of various hardware and software receive support from Bakcell for implementation of their ideas.
Being a known leader in innovation, Bakcell constantly supports the local startups, as well as project implemented in the area of education, science and technology.
The 5th TUSI at Azerbaijan University of Architecture and Construction
During the information session, students were provided with detailed information about developing a startup idea, building a strong team, and exploring existing opportunities within the innovation ecosystem.
You can also join the incubation program — register right now:
https://gub.icenter.az/home
The program offers participants:
• Practical knowledge to develop a startup idea
• Trainings and mentor meetings with industry experts
• Support in transforming a project into a real product
• Opportunities to build new connections and join the startup community
If you want to bring your innovative ideas to life and take your first step into the startup world, join our program!