Vietnam’s urban centers are growing at the fastest clip in ASEAN and challenging cities such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to provide affordable housing, control traffic congestion, manage waste, supply clean water, integrate green spaces and plan sustainably. A new Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam is inviting solutions to these challenges from around the world.

Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam was created by the Asian Development Bank and Government of Australia-funded Mekong Business Initiative (MBI). It follows a format that MBI pioneered with the highly successful MIST (Mekong Innovative Startup Tourism) and MATCh (Mekong AgriTech Challenge) innovation competitions.

The challenge is looking for deployable solutions from across the globe that can address problem statements contributed by the cities government of Vietnam. We are inviting businesses (startups, SMEs and even MNCs) that might be looking to expand into Vietnam to apply to the programme and demonstrate how they can innovate to address these problem statements. The Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam will fly selected company representatives to Da Nang, Vietnam to be matched with program mentors, and to receive guidance from industry champions and real demand-drivers in the cities of Vietnam. Participants will subsequently participate in a six-week virtual workshop to contextualize and enhance their solutions for applications in Vietnam. The program will culminate with participants returning to Ho Chi Minh City to pitch their solutions to government officials, venture capitalists and other stakeholders. TNB Ventures, a venture capital partner in the Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam, will consider Series-A funding for as many as three participants.

All innovative solutions that broadly fall into the 6 key areas of focus are welcome to apply to this call:

• Providing affordable housing
• Reducing traffic  congestion  and creating  more parking areas
• Drainage, sewerage and wastewater management
• Rapid  development  of  the  tourism  and  services  sector has enhanced Da Nang’s environmental problems
• Enhancing/increasing greenery and public spaces
• Supplying pure water to people

Benefits

• Real demand in Vietnam market: Work with real client owners to contextualise your solution to the needs of test-bed cities, Da Nang & Ho Chi Minh
• Funding Opportunities: Potential seed funding up to SGD40,000 or series A investment up to SGD3million from TNB Ventures
• Mentoring: Bespoke matching with esteemed program mentors and receive guidance and support from their local expertise.
• Network: Connect with the global Smart City ecosystem
• Adoption and collaboration: Winners at Demo Day will receive access to contract manufacturer networks to help with scaling

Application

Register to enter the challenge

Please submit this application form along with a Pitch Deck to [email protected]

Title of email: <Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam> <Company/Team name>

You are welcome to attach a video demonstrating your product/protoype as well (optional)

Important Dates

• Submit your application before September 18 2017
• Local Orientation Workshop in Danang in mid of October
• Six weeks vitual programme starts on October 16
• Demo Day: early December 2017 in Ho Chi Minh City

For more information, visit Global Smart City Innovation Challenge for Vietnam.