India & UAE CEPA Council to Boost Global Expansion for Startups

The UAE–India​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Start-Up Series, the headline initiative of the UAE–India CEPA Council, has become the largest cross-border start-up program in India, attracting in excess of 10,000 applications from all over the country.

The project's purpose is to link India's rapidly expanding entrepreneurial ecosystem with the UAE's solid innovation and investment landscape, thereby creating the UAE as a departure point for Indian startups looking for overseas growth.

The program, which was driven by the Director of the UAE–India CEPA Council, Ahmed Aljneibi, has enlisted the support of 14 universities, incubation centres, and industry bodies in its roadshows that were held in metropolitan cities of India such as Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Coimbatore.

The initiative is also getting support from major partners like Emirates NBD, DP World, FAB, RAKEZ, and Bisleri. The series is a manifestation of the bilateral cooperation that is deepening in the wake of trade, which is going beyond USD 100 billion annually and the UAE foreign direct investment in India, which is also increasing rapidly.

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The Council has recently shared the list of the Top 20 startups that have been shortlisted. These startups are from segments such as agritech, fintech, clean energy, robotics, and space technology.

The final pitch event held in New Delhi on 25th November will see the announcement of five winners, and each of them will be offered mentorship, regulatory guidance, and soft-landing packages to set up their operations in the UAE.

In order to drive cooperation further, the Council will be publishing an Investment Dossier that will feature the Top 100 startups. This will facilitate the connection between the investors and the partners of the UAE ecosystem who are interested in India’s most innovative and promising entrepreneurs, thus giving the entrepreneurial ambition a real and global ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌dimension.