MOU Signing with IBM

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Ignite (Formerly National ICT R&D Fund), Ministry of Information Technology & Telecom and IBM Italia S.p.A (Pakistan), a branch office of company established in Italy (IBM) on 19th day of May, 2017.

The MoU will enable Ignite (Formerly National ICT R&D Fund) to offer IBM Global Enterprunership Program to all startups registered in their Incubation Centers/Innovation Centers established in Islamabad. The Program shall be offered non-exclusively to all upcoming Incubation Centers/innovation Centers across the country.

IBM Global Entrepreneur shall provide the program and its services e.g. eligible software on premise at no charge, Bluemix credits,

The Program and its services shall be provided for Cloud Startups

IBM shall assign relationship managers, Mentors, hold SmartCamp events, provide IBM industry insights:

IBM shall provide Visibility vast global network of Business Partners

IBM shall provide access to Global Solutions Directory to eligible startups.

– IBM shall extend free of charge IBM services/facilities to the Fund’s Principal Investigator Organizations for the ongoing Technical R&D Projects of the Fund.

Freelancers are taking the world by storm and they are creating “gig economy”. Pakistan’s freelancing community stands among world’s top five freelance workforce. Both parties agree to create common platform to provide access to education, technical training, develop platform to consolidate the current freelancing community but also provide skill set to emerging workforce.

Fund shall develop single portal to provide access to education and training track similar to availed under “MEA Skill Academy”.

IBM shall provide customized technical training program, access to Bluemix, and eligible on-prem software to registered participants on the Fund portal for freelancers.

Fund reserves the right to provide IBM training portal to successful bidder for freelancing training program if needed. The implementation of these services requires a coordinated effort between the Parties involving infrastructure, financial cost, planning and management. The Company and IBM shall work together for these services.