Innovation Centre Kosovo (ICK) is the leading integrator of youth, startups, and innovative businesses, aiding the economic growth, youth employability, visibility, and prosperity of Kosovo. ICK’s vision and plan for the future are to create a modern society in which innovation and entrepreneurial spirit are an integrated part of our culture & society, and a major factor of development and improvement of the living standard of all citizens.
At a Glance:
I-Hub: Innovation Centre Kosovo
Website: www.ickosovo.com
Location: Pristina, Kosovo
Startups: Over 1,000 student and faculty helped
A Closer Look at Innovation Centre Kosovo:
Kosovo startup ecosystem is an emerging one. Kosovo has great potential for economic transformation and development of the nation in various fields mainly through abandoning or reinventing some of its traditional industries predominantly by focusing on knowledge-based innovative activities and more engagement of the youth.
This sector is becoming the main driver for economic growth and employment by increasing the international competitiveness of the Kosovo IT industry based on digital excellence. Gradually, the youth is adapting their knowledge and skills to the needs of the economy, fostering innovation and entrepreneurship and attracting investment for sustainable development and social inclusion. It is worth to mention that currently, ICT is one of the country’s few export-oriented industries, marked by continued growth
ICK has created a great community of startups positioned in different stages of development including early stage, growth stage, expansion, and maturity stage. Despite their development status, startups connect and build partnerships with each other, making it easier for them to overcome some common challenges when penetrating the market with new products and services.
Current initiatives:
Startup support program
ICK helps business entrepreneurs in creating and developing successful companies. It provides an engaging environment for commercialization of viable business ideas, as well as visibility in the market for both new and existing companies (up to 2 years). The ICK Incubator provides pre-incubation, incubation and virtual incubation services, depending on the experience of the team and level of development of business ideas.
Skills development
ICK has delivered training services for tenants in the incubator and delivered market-oriented, high-quality courses, upgrading the skill-sets of the general workforce, public institutions, ICT professionals, freelancers, students, and civil society. In addition to training, ICK has its own multimedia space dedicated to hosting different types of events, with the purpose of networking, matchmaking, competing, product launching and learning, in an open, casual and friendly way.
Co-working space
ICK offers a unique ecosystem of resources, inspiration, and collaboration opportunities to grow the positive impact of your work. With its HUB038, the first of its kind in Kosovo, ICK offers an innovation lab, a co-working space, a business Incubator, a social enterprise, and a tech-community center.