The government has planned to set up innovative hubs at three universities of the country to encourage researchers to be innovative in business models, commercially viable products and their marketing, according to an official document.

To be named as “University Innovation Hubs”, the project is still at an early stage and the sites of the hubs are yet to be selected. It aims to develop digital entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems.

“This will be the government’s preliminary step towards embracing the upcoming 4th industrial revolution which will be digital centric,” says the document.

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According to official sources, the universities that can provide spaces of 3,000 sq ft to 5,000 sq ft will be eligible for the innovation hub.

After the initial process, the eligible students will get funds from different projects.

The innovation hubs will be expanded to both public and private universities in phases.

The project is part of the government’s policy to inspire the young entrepreneurs to be more creative and innovative in new business models that will create more jobs.

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As part of this process, the government formed Start-up Bangladesh in March 2020 with an allocated capital of Tk 500 crore to help new entrepreneurs innovate faster, create new jobs, develop technical skills and realise the vision of Digital Bangladesh, according to the document.

In addition to the planned university hubs, the government will set up Incubator-cum-Training Centres at engineering and technology universities in Chattogram and Khulna.

The Incubator-cum-Training Centre of Chattogram will be at Chattogram University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) on 4.7 acres of land. The 72000-sqf building is 27.1 kilometers away from Chattogram Railway Station.

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The Incubator-cum-training centre of Khulna will be at the Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (Kuet) on 8 acres of land. The 72000-sqf building is 12 kilometers away from Khulna zero point.

Meanwhile, projects with innovative ideas are already being financed from the Innovation Fund and other sources, says the document.

So far, 259 projects of innovative ideas have been provided with funds.

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To identify the social problems of citizens and facilitate their access to services, various innovative ideas are being identified, developed, implemented in the form of projects and disseminated throughout the country.

Across the country, 1,725 out of about 3,500 small and large innovation projects related to agriculture, health, education, disability, environment, empowerment of women, G2B and G2C have been implemented, and implementation of the remaining projects are in progress.

To encourage innovation in the private sector, eight game and apps development centres have been set up in the educational institutions in eight divisional towns, and 32 game and apps testing labs have been set up in 30 educational institutions at the district level.

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The Innovation and Entrepreneur Development Academy has been established to provide co- working space to start-ups and provide various types of training.

Two companies named as Data Center Company Limited and the Start-up Bangladesh Limited have been formed.