Tech startups must integrate communities in their business model: Facebook's Emeka Afigbo
When startups grow, India prospers. What's good for India is good for Facebook as well, says Emeka Afigbo, Head of Developer Programs, Facebook.
APJ Abdul Kalam has inspired many a speaker; it was no different at TechSparks 2018. Emeka Afigbo, Head of Developer Programs, Facebook, began by saying “a dream is not something which you have when you're asleep, it is that which does not let you sleep”.
Speaking about the holistic growth of society, Emeka said that what is good for India is good for Facebook. “When startups grow, India prospers. The more they grow, the higher the economy grows. What's good for India is good for Facebook as well,” he said.
Emeka also spoke about partnerships and initiatives that have been started by Facebook to help the ecosystem and promote entrepreneurship. For the last few years, Facebook India has been playing a significant role in helping the Indian startup ecosystem in various ways through a number of programmes and initiatives, he said.
Focusing on the importance of building a community of enterprises, he said that the social media giant recently announced that it would celebrate India’s innate entrepreneurial spirit with the first India Startup Day on October 9, 2018. Awards will be distributed to recognise startups that are game-changers in their field and are playing a key role in the country’s growth story through their innovations.
Encouraging entrepreneurship
The Facebook Community Leadership Programme (FCLP) is another global initiative that will benefit over 100 participants from around the world. It will provide them with support tools, funding, and the confidence they need to lead their communities.
Under the programme, three women from India won Facebook Community Leadership fellowships last month, for their work on areas like pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. The top five winners will receive up to $1 million to fund their community initiative.
The other awards that Facebook has been conferring include SheLeadsTech (to recognise the most successful companies with a woman founder/co-founder), Building for the World (to recognise companies working on solutions that can be used globally and have seen traction outside India), Building for Tomorrow (for startups working on building blocks for a stronger tech-driven future) and Building for the Next Billion (for startups developing and implementing solutions for social, cultural, and/or environmental issues in India).
YourStory's annual extravaganza TechSparks brings together the best and the brightest from the startup ecosystem, corporate world, policy makers, and of course, the investor community. Over the years, it has grown to become India's most loved tech and startup platform for knowledge sharing and networking. The ninth edition of TechSparks also marks YourStory's 10th anniversary. A big thank you for all your support over the years and keep reading and watching YourStory.
