Start-up support for the youth

Young Entrepreneurs Association’s Start-up Foundation (Khanh Hoa Youth Federation) established at VND250 million has been operating for nearly 2 years in order to seek and provide support for start-up projects of the youth in Khanh Hoa Province. However, the funding remains inaccessible to start-up projects for some reasons. 

 

Nguyen Khac Duy, Vice-Director of Khanh Hoa Youth Support Center says the reason is the number of new start-up projects in need of support in Khanh Hoa is limited. Most of the start-up projects have been operating for a long time such as the model of organic food by Mai Quoc Sang; high-tech agriculture by Do Tran Anh, etc. Other start-up projects are small-scaled or not yet in need of funding aid for development.

 

 

 

Mai Quoc Sang, Director of Sala Vietnam Company, a start-up business in organic food, says there are many start-up projects in Khanh Hoa but they are small-scaled or not yet announced. Start-up clubs established to support the projects include Khanh Hoa Start-up Club founded by coordination entities, Start-up Station by Nha Trang University Youth Union. However, an entrepreneurial ecosystem or entrepreneurship ecosystem is required to link the start-up clubs to build an environment for shaping the development of start-up projects. Each start-up club can be considered as a small community and at present, there is no organization in the province to connect the small communities to orient the projects of young people. The clubs are now operating separately.

 

Bui Hoai Nam, Vice-Secretary of Khanh Hoa Youth Union shares the same opinion, adding that this is the shortcoming in the start-up support for young people in Khanh Hoa.  Existing start-up clubs are working separately. Khanh Hoa Youth Union in association with Khanh Hoa Youth Support Center (under Khanh Hoa Youth Union) is making lists of businesses run by young people in Khanh Hoa to establish start-up clubs in localities and at schools and then establish an entrepreneurial ecosystem managed by the Youth Support Center under the guidelines of The Ministry of Science & Technology. 

 

The support is so helpful to new ideas for business start-up that needs funding for formation and development. The projects will receive the financial support during their development from businesses, Nguyen Khac Duy says. In addition, according to the leader of Khanh Hoa Youth Union, the creative contest for Youth Union members and young people this year will be different from that in previous years with the expansion in start-up ideas and contest eligibility. The contest is open to students, young people in urban and rural areas, young businessmen, start-up businesses and individuals. 

 

The first prize winner will be awarded VND 30 million from the Start-up Foundation and prize-winning ideas will be processed and supported by businesses in Khanh Hoa. Suitable projects will be chosen to receive financial assistance for development. Reportedly, launched in April, the contest has drawn more than 150 creative start-up ideas. The preliminary is scheduled to begin in late September and the final will take place in October.

 

With the great effort to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem served as incubators for creativity, innovation for entrepreneurship start-up, more and more effective and feasible start-up ideas are expected to be generated and funded to gain a greater chance of success.

 

V.Thanh

Translated by N.T