The Quezon City government has launched a new program designed to encourage students to go into business.
Dubbed StartUp QC Business Plan Competition, the scheme aims to bolster the youth’s entrepreneurial spirit.
“Through the Startup QC Business Plan Competition, our aim is to foster an innovative culture among our youth, enable them to broaden their perspectives, and open up opportunities for them to reach their full potential. I am confident that our QC students of today will become the future business leaders and technopreneurs of tomorrow,” Mayor Joy Belmonte said.
The program is open to all students of legal age residing in the city, who are enrolled at any school, college, or university in the Philippines. Rio N. Araja
It is supported by national government agencies, such as the Department of Information and Communications Technology, and Department of Trade and Industry, alongside Launchgarage, a startup accelerator and tech innovation hub located in Quezon City.
Applicants are encouraged to submit imaginative business ideas that are focused on high development impact sectors such as agriculture (agritech), education (edtech), environment (greentech or cleantech), health (health tech) and government services (govtech) through https://qceservices.quezoncity.gov.ph/.
Upon selection, qualified student applicants will undergo cadetship training sessions conducted by a pool of startup industry experts and members of the academe where they will learn about key topics such as design thinking, cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset and how to create a pitch deck.
After the cadetship, student finalists will have to pitch their business idea to a panel of judges for a chance to win up to P100,000.
Several educational institutions, including Ateneo de Manila University, Miriam College, Quezon City University, Technological Institute of the Philippines, Thames International Business School, and the University of the Philippines Diliman, have endorsed the program.
Applications will close on Sept. 14.