infoDev’s Incubator Initiative
The Information for Development Program (infoDev) launched the Incubator Program in 2002 to foster ICT–enabled innovation and entrepreneurship in developing economies, and to learn more about whether and how business incubation can be a mechanism for ICT impact. The initiative was designed to promote economic growth by fostering ICT-enabled private sector development through the following objectives:
- Improve performance of existing incubators and develop viable programs in developing countries
- Promote knowledge generation and dissemination
- Foster national and international partnerships and networks
- Foster ICT-enabled innovation and development of a new generation of small enterprises as engines for socioeconomic development in developing countries
In addition to promoting ICT-enabled development, the initiative also seeks to strengthen the capacity of business incubators in developing economies to pursue more traditional incubation goals. These include
- creation of new jobs
- launch and scale of local businesses
- growth in tax revenues
- increased economic diversification
- promotion of indigenous technologies.
infoDev has mobilized about US$20 million for the initiative, supporting close to 100 institutions in more than 50 countries. Investments were made in grants for incubator organizations, as well as in technical assistance in the form of advice, international workshops and conferences, and the facilitation of regional and global networks of incubators. These investments included:
- Planning grants for the design and execution of new organizations
- Capacity-building grants for support of start-up organizations
- Operational grants for the improved performance of existing organizations
The program started with the assumption that this type of intervention is particularly valuable in business environments that host notable barriers to the development of new firms and technologies. For the purposes of the assessment, these challenges were explored as gaps in social and physical capital in the local business environment.
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