Registration is open for the second edition of IDB Lab Forum in Bogotá, Colombia. The international meeting organized by the IDB Group’s innovation laboratory will be held on June 13 and 14.
Through its innovation laboratory, IDB Lab, the Inter-American Development Bank Group, will hold the second edition of IDB Lab Forum in Bogotá, Colombia, on June 13 and 14. The thematic axes of the event are financing and the promotion of entrepreneurial ecosystems.
This high-level international meeting seeks to improve the quality of life of the citizens of Latin America and the Caribbean through innovation and technology. Entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, accelerators, and other actors in the innovation ecosystem will meet to take advantage of business opportunities, discover trends, identify talent, and launch new initiatives.
The event's agenda highlights the importance of financing early-stage innovation and the development of entrepreneurial ecosystems to foster new solutions for the region's major economic and social issues, incorporating gender, diversity, climate, and biodiversity concerns throughout the discussion.
The forum will include the participation of the President of the IDB, Ilan Goldfajn; the Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Tourism of Colombia, Germán Umaña; Ramiro López Ghio, the IDB Group’s representative in Colombia, and includes more than 80 prominent speakers and panelists. Among them are Sean O'Sullivan, founder of the global venture capital fund specializing in deep tech SOSV; Brigitte Baptiste, an expert in environmental issues and biodiversity and current rector of the EAN University in Colombia; Carolina Ochoa, Partner and Coordinator of the Brazilian impact accelerator Quintessa; Gerd Weissbach, General Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the German Sparkassenstiftung for International Cooperation, and Madeleine Clavijo, co-Founder of Kushki, a "unicorn" startup of Ecuadorian origin dedicated to digital payments.
This year, the event is part of the 30th-anniversary celebration of IDB Lab, "which is in full evolution to become the first innovation hub for development in the region," according to Irene Arias, CEO of IDB Lab. "IDB Lab Forum is a space that highlights this new role; in it, we offer a unique platform to connect and generate exchanges between entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, accelerators and public entities, among other innovation actors," she concludes.
This year, IDB Lab Forum will include the WeXchange platform, a pioneer in promoting female entrepreneurship in Latin America and the Caribbean in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. The event will feature fifteen innovative entrepreneurs from the region selected from over 300 applicants to present their companies to potential investors for funding opportunities.
To register and access more information about IDB Lab Forum, visit www.idblabforum.org.
About the IDB Group
The Inter-American Development Bank is devoted to improving lives. Established in 1959, the IDB is a leading source of long-term financing for economic, social, and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB also conducts cutting-edge research and provides policy advice, technical assistance and training to public and private sector clients throughout the region. Access our virtual tour.
About IDB Lab
IDB Lab is the innovation laboratory of the IDB Group, the leading source of development finance and know-how for improving lives in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The purpose of IDB Lab is to drive innovation for inclusion in the region by mobilizing financing, knowledge, and connections to test early-stage solutions with the potential to transform the lives of vulnerable populations affected by economic, social, and/or environmental factors. Since 1993 IDB Lab has approved more than US$ 2 billion in projects deployed across 26 LAC countries. www.idblab.org
Manzano Guillen, Maria De Gador
