«Tourism. The Path to Innovation": start-up competition with a prize fund of 1.5 billion soums!

IT Park, with support from the Ministry for the development of information technologies and communications of the Republic of Uzbekistan jointly with the State Committee of Uzbekistan on the development of tourism announced the startup competition in the tourism sector.

In the aftermath of the pandemic and the General closure of borders, the tourism sector has suffered a lot of damage worldwide, and Uzbekistan is no exception. Therefore, we decided to organize a competition within the framework of the decree Of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan "On urgent measures to support the tourism sector to reduce the negative impact of the coronavirus pandemic" to take measures to support the tourism sector of Uzbekistan, obtain high-tech products for the development of the ecosystem of startups and tourism in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as to unlock the tourism potential, develop domestic tourism in the country and support youth initiatives in the tourism sector.

What is the competition?

«Tourism. The Path to Innovation" is a competition for startups aimed at supporting the country's tourism sector, as well as developing innovations in the tourism industry, unlocking the country's tourism potential and service.

Application selection criteria:

- relevance of the proposed startup project: the value of the idea formulated in the project for solving real modern problems and tasks is evaluated;

- innovative orientation and novelty of the concept of a startup project: the project should involve the use of new, improved technologies, products, and (or) principles of production organization that were not previously used in the Republic, provide for the creation of new ones, as well as the introduction of new services;

- evaluation of the achievability of the results of a startup project: assesses the availability, validity, and sufficiency of the proposed methods and methods for solving problems to obtain the stated results;

- assessment of the demand for a product or service in the market: the market demand and commercial prospects of the declared products or services are evaluated;

- opportunities for commercialization of a startup project: the future development should have a chance of implementation and market entry, applicability for a specific consumer;

- evaluation of potential competitive advantages of the project: the critical characteristics for the consumer are evaluated, according to which the product/technology has advantages over existing analogs;

- investment attractiveness of the project: a combination of the favorable investment and innovative conditions and benefits that will bring additional profit and reduce the risk of non-return on investment;

- economic efficiency of the project: economic efficiency that takes into account the financial results of the project implementation for its direct participants, as well as budget efficiency that reflects the financial consequences of the project implementation.

If you have an idea for a startup that can at least slightly change the current state of the tourism sector in Uzbekistan, then "Tourism. The Path to Innovation" is an ideal opportunity to contribute to the tourism sector and the development of our country as a whole.

The final stage of the competition will be held at the end of November 2020. The jury will select up to 20 teams based on the developed criteria to receive grants for startup development.

The total prize fund of the contest is 1,500,000,000 soums.

To submit your application here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfQJRyoz80c1-0evTrsC8hjs9ycu162UogNaJMqyTxnermHFw/viewform