Bangladesh and India reiterated their commitment to strengthening collaboration in the startup sector, including expanding exchange programmes.

This came at a meeting on the sideline of the two-day Bangladesh Startup Summit-2023 at InterContinental Dhaka yesterday.

Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for ICT, Pranay Verma, Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh and officials of 12 startups were present.

The participants emphasised the effective implementation of the "Bridge Portal" for skill developmentband exchange of knowledge, ideas and experiences and mutual information between entrepreneurs of the two countries.

Bridge Portal is an online networking platform for startups of Bangladesh and India.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the "India-Bangladesh Startup Bridge" portal.

The Indian startups presented their business proposals before the state minister. After hearing their pitches, Palak said he would inform the prime minister about potential Indian startups and promised to take initiatives to bridge the gap between startups in Bangladesh and India.

Addressing the meeting, Verma said Digital Bangladesh and Smart Bangladesh have opened the doors of new possibilities.

"The joint efforts of our startup community will enhance the growth of the two countries," he added.