Modi in Lisbon: IPISH to foster links between India-Portugal startup ecosystems

Yesterday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Portugal, on the first leg of his three-nation visit, to hold talks with his Portuguese counterpart Antonio Costa to boost bilateral ties. Of the many announcements, one was the India-Portugal International Startup Hub (IPISH), a platform developed to strengthen and foster links between the startup ecosystem of the two countries.

“The start-up sphere is an interesting space for cooperation. It is a great means to generate value and wealth for society,” Modi said.

The IPISH platform, initiated by Startup India and supported by the Commerce & Industry Ministry and Startup Portugal,encompasses all stakeholders of the startup ecosystem in India, such as startups, investors, mentors, incubators, accelerators, aspiring entrepreneurs, service providers and government bodies.

The platform hosts a range of tools and will provide information on the start-up hotspots of Bangalore, Delhi and Lisbon.

It also gives access to important resources such as learning and development programmes, information about relevant government schemes, a forum to brainstorm and discuss, and news and blogson associated subjects, such as policy, taxation, and visa options.

The news reports also stated that under IPISH, a network of honorary ambassadors will be established in India and Portugal to guide startups from both countries.

Early this year, the Portuguese government also announced that it is working on providing startup visas for Indian entrepreneurs.

Portugal can prove to be a strong counterpart to India in the entrepreneurship programme. In March last year, the Portuguese government took the entrepreneurial ecosystem by storm and launched Startup Portugal.

The startup programme aims to give structure to the ecosystem and provide tools that allow startups and entrepreneurs to create and evolve. It has specific goals that go from building structure for the ecosystem to attracting investors/co-finance startups in a very early stage level.

The focus is to promote and accelerate Portuguese startups but it also takes into consideration the possibility of attracting international startups so that they come and stay in the country.

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