LatAm List – Colombian president Ivan Duque recently visited Silicon Valley and 500 Startups, one of the most-prestigious accelerators in the US, to promote Colombian startups’ participation in initiatives for accelerating and scaling businesses.
The visit closed with a memorandum signed between iNNpulsa, a Colombian government-run institution for entrepreneurs, and 500 Startups, to support local initiatives in Colombia like C Emprende, a campus for startup innovation and growth.
“The ecosystem at Silicon Valley was surprised that this was a government-led initiative. It’s a milestone in Colombia’s history. We believe that we can be a model for the world. This partnership is real. We are going to provide mentorships and new methods. So this is the moment for entrepreneurs,” said Ignacio Gaitan, iNNpulsa’s President.
Duque added at the end of the meeting that all the entrepreneurs that he met were more interested in solving a problem in society rather than making money.
“That’s the union between social and corporate profitability that the business sector aspires to have and why I’ve decided to put entrepreneurship at the center of development,” explained Duque. “The idea behind this agreement is to select the best from our country and to see more unicorns and startups grow more than three digits, because it’s the start of the country’s transformation”.
This will be the second memorandum of understanding signed by the Colombian government in Silicon Valley; the first was with Cisco.
Read more on La Republica.