The Ministry of Science and Technology said it is finding ways to spur growth of startups following the Government’s approval last month of a national scheme to support an innovative startup ecosystem.

The scheme, which was drawn up by the ministry, aims to help 2,000 startup projects, 600 startup businesses and 100 firms successfully attract investments from venture investors or undergo mergers and acquisitions with value totaling about VND2 trillion (US$89.7 million).

Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Van Tung said the scheme is the first official document about support for an startup ecosystem. If this ecosystem takes shape, it would create opportunities for startups to grow. 

Tung was speaking with local media on the sidelines of an award ceremony held in Hanoi on Tuesday to honor domestic companies having outstanding startup projects to cope with climate change. 

Tung said the scheme focuses on highly innovative startups. If businesses are established based on technology innovations, they could turn out high-quality products for consumers. 

He said the scheme concentrates on policies. In reality, the prevailing laws lack regulations on entrepreneurs, financial support sourced from the State budget and financial issues arising when foreign investors inject money into Vietnamese startups, among others.    

At present, many firms want to invest in startups. Therefore, the country must work out proper policies and mechanisms to instill confidence in investors. 

There are a number of co-working places in Vietnam where people train and study to set up enterprises with help from experts in various sectors like finance, science, marketing and law.    

The ministry wants universities to offer training courses to help young people establish startups, and will build a website to link local and foreign startup ecosystems in the coming time.

The ministry has been seeking to have a venture fund for startups in place but this plan has yet to materialize. Tung said the ministry is coordinating with relevant ministries and agencies to establish the fund.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment mentioned a venture fund in a law on support for small and medium enterprises it was assigned to draft. The draft law is expected to go before the National Assembly in July. 

To help citizens learn more about the national scheme to support the innovative startup ecosystem, the Ministry of Science and Technology will provide more details about the scheme to local media.