Orange Corners Bangladesh graduates 2nd cohort & awards grants worth 62 lacs Taka

Orange Corners Bangladesh, a global initiative building entrepreneurial ecosystems for youth, hosted an Alumni Reception at Impact Hub Dhaka on August 27, 2024, for the second cohort of enterprises successfully completing the incubation programme. The event recognized 12 alumni enterprises from this cohort as they unlocked grants worth around 62 lacs taka in total through Track I funding.
Representatives from the award-winning enterprises include Sasthya Seba, BD Highway Turbine, Agronochain, Banglar Math, Esscre, Herb Bangla, Nodes Digital, Supplyline Limited, ZerooZen, JRC Board, Pathwork, and Khelboo shared their experiences at the event. These businesses are operating across Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Mymensingh, Rangpur, Sirajganj, Barisal, Joypurhat, Bogura, Narsingdi, Tangail, and Cumilla in Bangladesh, while one company is serving clients in the USA and Canada as well. On this momentous occasion, the Alumni Ambassador from this cohort, Zaheen Mahdi, Co-founder and the CEO of Herb Bangla remarked “SMEs/startups are known as the heart of the economy and one of the key points of this SME is cash flow and investment. Although we have amazing ideas, however, in my 7 years of experience in Bangladesh I could not find any other place where they help us to raise initial investment.”
Sadia Hossain, Chief Operating Officer of YY Ventures that spearheads Orange Corners Bangladesh, shared, “In our second cohort, we brought together 16 promising enterprises from diverse sectors, each committed to driving social and environmental impact across various industries in Bangladesh, including Education, Agriculture, Media & Culture, Sports, ICT, Health & Safety. Notably, 8 of these ventures were led by women. Out of the 16 enterprises starting the cohort, 12 successfully completed the incubation programme, and were awarded grants worth more than 57,000 Euros in total through Track I funding, which will enable them to expand their businesses. If they achieve significant milestones in the coming months, they stand a chance to receive up to 50,000 Euros each through Track II funding.”
Partner representatives from Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency also spoke at this event. The incubation programme for the third cohort will commence from September 2024. For more information about Orange Corners Bangladesh, visit www.orangecorners.com/country/bangladesh/