Here is some good news for young entrepreneurs who want to start a venture in the coir sector. The Kerala Government has decided to launch a start-up incubator for promoting young coir entrepreneurs along the lines of the Kochi-based Startup Village.
State Minister for Revenue and Coir Adoor Prakash said that the Government is taking all measures to attract young entrepreneurs to the coir sector.
“We have already initiated discussions with the people behind Startup Village to launch a similar project in coir. Another round of meetings will be held soon in Thiruvananthapuram to take the project forward,” he said.
Coir Secretary Rani George said the Government will introduce an incubation and innovation fund for young entrepreneurs who want to launch their business ventures in coir. To begin with, the National Coir Research and Management Institute (NCRMI) will work as the nodal agency for the business incubator project.
Once the project is implemented, any young person wanting to launch an enterprise in coir would only need to walk into the offices of the NCRMI with their project details. The officials will analyse the proposal in detail and provide feasible projects and the necessary support to launch it.
Approved projects will be given seed money, and the entrepreneurs will be able to use the office space and facilities at the incubator. The officials concerned would monitor the operations and once the business is up and running, it can move out of the incubator.
"Through this project, we aim to bring in more young people into the coir industry. We hope to streamline the project and launch it in another six months”, she added.