Amazon, signs MoU with NIF to empower grassroot entrepreneurs

Amazon India signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the NIF Incubation and Entrepreneurship Council (NIFientreC), a technology business incubator hosted by National Innovation Foundation (NIF), to accelerate grassroots innovation, local economy, and livelihoods across rural India.

Gulshan Rai, Chairperson, NIFientreC, said, "With the fast-paced digital transformation that's happening in the country right now, there could not be a better time for grassroots entrepreneurs to consider taking their innovations directly to the consumers all over India."

"Our partnership with NIFientreC is aimed at bringing the benefits of digitisation and e-commerce to grassroots entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs taking forward the student innovations from rural areas to sell to millions of Amazon customers in India and across the globe," said Manish Tiwary, Vice President, Amazon India.

Amazon and NIFientreC will collaborate with key players in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, including central and state government partners, to conduct training programmes and accelerate grassroots innovation, the company stated.

Vipin Kumar, Director, NIF said, "It's a milestone in India's innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem that grassroots innovators and Amazon will now be closer than ever before, which is an inclusivity paradigm that the rest of the world may want to replicate."

The MoU is signed days after Narendra Modi declared January 16 as the National Start-up Day to enable start-ups to reach the far-flung areas of the country.