«Global Cleantech Innovation Program in Kazakhstan» (GCIP-Kazakhstan): First results and awards for the best startups
14 December, ASTANA – Key event in the field of clean technologies (cleantech) took place in the capital of Kazakhstan – the National Forum of the project Global Cleantech Innovation Program in Kazakhstan – Promoting cleantech innovation and entrepreneurship in small and medium-sized enterprises for green jobs in Kazakhstan (GCIP-Kazakhstan), organized by the NJSC «International Green Technologies and Investment Projects Center».
Since April 2023, IGTIPC has been actively implementing the GCIP-Kazakhstan project, aimed at finding, developing and supporting entrepreneurs in the field of cleantech. More than 20 selected startups received acceleration and mentoring support as well as the opportunity to turn their innovative ideas into competitive products and services that can create green jobs in the country. Projects cover various economic sectors, including renewable energy, waste management, water resources, energy efficiency and others.
Didar Karimsakov, Deputy Chair of the Board at NJSC «International Green Technologies and Investment Projects Center» noted that Kazakhstan has quite a solid innovative and human resources potential, however, there are various barriers to the commercialization of green technologies. Given Kazakhstan’s geographic location in the Central Asian region and the intention to develop financial and institutional opportunities for green technologies, Kazakhstan is fertile ground for becoming a magnet for innovative activity to support green businesses and all stakeholders. By analogy with the successful GCIP countries, the Center will create all the conditions for the effective implementation of the project and will strive to solve problems in the field of «greening» the economy through the development of innovation and support for technological entrepreneurship in the field of clean technologies. So National Forum testifies to this.
During the National Forum, the finalists of the GCIP-Kazakhstan project presented their technologies to the jury, comprising representatives from the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as the banking sector and experienced entrepreneurs.
The project pitches, delivered in a dynamic four-minute format, were assessed by the judges on both technological innovation and the entrepreneurs' presentation skills, underscoring the importance of combining technical expertise with effective communication skills.
In addition, forum participants took part in the Investor Connect event, where they engaged with investors interested in supporting green technologies. The Forum
also included a «business game», which allowed startups to develop a project design, as well as find creative solutions and improve their technologies.
The Forum concluded with an Awards Ceremony, where the four best startups were awarded funding from the GEF in the amount of 3,000,000 tenge.
The awarded startups included:
- Krintel – Solid waste disposal
- Ozen-M – Water resources monitoring system
- ReCompo – Green building
- Cryo Adsorbent – Cleaning of contaminated areas
- SAGI – Application to stimulate the recycling of solid waste. The startup won in the women's leadership category.
Many thanks to the project organizers and everyone involved in GCIP. I am very glad that I became a participant in such a large-scale project, where we not only won funding, but also gained knowledge from the coolest experts, - winner Dmitry Berillo shared his joy.
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The main goal of the GCIP-Kazakhstan project is to promote innovation, support SME projects (small and medium-sized enterprises), startups in the field of clean technologies to create green jobs in Kazakhstan. GCIP-Kazakhstan is part of the Global Cleantech Innovation Programme (GCIP) supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and led by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).