The future of Philippine startups looks bright with the Philippines national ranking up by 16 positions, according to the recently released StartupBlink Ecosystem Ranking Report.
To continue this momentum, QBO Innovation Hub, the Philippines’ first public-private sector initiative which aims to connect, transform and empower Filipino startups, holds the Startup Roadshow starting this May.
The roadshow aims to inspire innovators and enable communities throughout the country through sessions on startup business concepts and tools, ideation, design thinking, business model canvas and local ecosystem mapping.
Facilitated by highly experienced QBO members and startup founders, the workshops are designed to be fun and engaging to spark the participants’ creativity as they kickoff their startup journey. The event also features panel discussions and networking opportunities for those wanting to connect with fellow tech leaders.
“The local startup ecosystem continues to grow due to sustained confidence in the country’s economy, technological advancements, and newly-introduced regulations such as the ‘Innovative Startup Act’ which seeks to promote ease of doing business in the Philippines,” says Katrina Chan, director of QBO Innovation Hub.
“While it’s all helpful in creating a healthy business environment for Filipino entrepreneurs, there are more opportunities to bring cutting-edge ideas to life,” she says.
This is the second time that QBO Innovation Hub is holding the roadshow across major cities in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. In 2018, 13 cities and over 1,300 participants joined the first run of the roadshow.
Government organizations signed partnerships with QBO to contribute to countryside development efforts. The Department of Information and Communications Technology was among the first to get on board, sponsoring programs in seven cities last year.
QBO hopes to make this year’s roadshow bigger through the support of more partners, communities and business owners. Interested partners who want to bring the workshop to their respective communities, schools or cities can host an introductory workshop using QBO’s set module. Partners wanting to learn specific skills or learn more about certain topics can have custom-made workshops as well.
“We saw the impact of last year’s roadshow in answering what most aspiring startup founders want to know: ‘Where do we start?’ We want to help them figure out the answer,” says Chan. “We’d also like for more partners to come on board with us to help discover the next wave of homegrown startups that will put our country on the global innovation map. Who knows? The next big thing may be in your school, your community, or your city,” she says.
QBO (‘ku-bo’) is an innovation hub or a platform for the startup community to collaborate, develop talent, and grow.
It provides startups with support and resources through events and capacity building programs as well as focused interventions designed to improve access to markets, knowledge, capital and talent.
QBO is the country’s first public-private initiative for startups, created through a partnership between IdeaSpace, J.P. Morgan, Department of Science and Technology and Department of Trade and Industry.
Spurred on by the vision of Filipinos startups changing the world, QBO’s mission is to create a globally competitive startup ecosystem in the Philippines.