YEREVAN, JULY 25, ARMENPRESS. The Sevan Startup Summit 2017 kicked off today.

In addition to sports competitions, 92 teams will attempt to attract financing of their startups.

Awards, grants, investments which can promote the initiation of business ideas of the youth.

The business competitions include tourism, food, agriculture and scientific branches.

Teams will introduce their ideas to the judges, who will choose the best, who in their turn will have the chance to receive financing.

The grand prix is 8000 dollars. More than 1000 participants of 10 countries will have the chance to attract up to 200,000 dollars.

“Today, we will attempt to lay the foundation of new enterprises here, which in their turn will bring their contribution to the country’s development”, Hakob Hakobyan, chairman of the board of trustees of Startup Armenia, the organizer of the event, said.

Karen Gevorgyan, Deputy CEO of the National Center of Armenian SME development, the co-organizer of the event, said the number of participants and the volume of the event is increasing with every year. “It is due to this very kind of events that the content of the SME branch must change, by bringing an innovative breath”, he said.

Gevor Poghosyan, president of Global AM NGO, one of the other organizers, says he was so excited with the last year’s event that he decided to have his contribution in organizing it. “I am convinced that this event will become a tradition and will include a wider circle in the future”, he said.

GIZ, the German International Cooperation Agency has provided financial and technical support for the event.

“The EU highly values the development of SME branch in Armenia. Therefore our program decided to support the Sevan Startup Summit, because the SMEs of tomorrow start from here”, Eva Neher, project leader of GIZ said.