The 2024 Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award will give a priority to start-up ideas, models, solutions, and products that are eco-friendly and create practical value for the community.

Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award is an annual event initiated by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper in 2019.

This year's event, jointly held by Tuoi Tre and the Vietnam Youth Federation in Ho Chi Minh City in association with the Business Startup Support Center (BSSC) and the Packaging Recycling Organization Vietnam (PRO Vietnam), is considered a journey to seek green start-up inspirations.

A press conference to introduce the program was held at the Tuoi Tre headquarters in Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday.

Deputy editor-in-chief of Tuoi Tre Tran Xuan Toan said the program had received over 1,000 start-up projects over the past four seasons of the Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award with some 100 having been honored. More than VND2.2 billion (US$89,247) has been provided to start-ups.

This year’s edition focuses on green start-ups and the organizer hopes to spread the start-up inspiration and movement to young people, creating an environment to nurture green start-up ideas and determination, while heading toward sustainable development and environmental protection.

The program is aimed at seeking and honoring effective start-up models which bring value to society and Vietnam.

Green start-up projects and individuals will have opportunities to access investors, investment funds, and banks, Toan said.

Vo Hung Thuat, director of the Media Service Center at Tuoi Tre, said the organizer set different criteria for each round and category.

For the top 20 projects and the final round, the organizer will focus on sustainable development aspects in finance, environment, and human resources. They will also assess creativity, community contributions, strategies for capital mobilization, and revenue generation, Thuat added.

Ngo Minh Hai, secretary of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and chairman of the Vietnam Youth Federation in Ho Chi Minh City, noted at the press conference that young people should develop and refine their skills during their working process before engaging in start-ups.

Pham Phu Ngoc Trai, chairman of PRO Vietnam, hailed the Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award this year, which gives prominence to pioneering.

Young people pioneering in green start-ups will create a motivation for the business community, Trai said.

BSSC director Nguyen Thi Dieu Hang also shared her impression at the theme of the Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award, adding that this would encourage the young to pursue sustainable start-ups.

Since the 2024 Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award was kicked off on August 26, the organizer has received nearly 150 start-up projects and stories.

These stories will be introduced in Tuoi Tre’s online publication (tuoitre.vn).

The top 20 start-ups are expected to be announced on October 24.

They will receive financial aid from investment management firm VinaCapital, Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank, automaker Volvo, and insurance company Dai-ichi Life Vietnam, among others. 

There will be one special prize worth VND100 million ($4,046) from PRO Vietnam chairman Trai.

An evaluation council will talk with the top 10 start-ups through coffee talks to choose the winner of the special prize on October 31.

A ceremony to honor these start-ups was planned to be held on November 10 this year.

Interested start-ups can send dossiers to the program organizer until October 20 at tuoitrestartupaward@tuoitre.com.vn.

They can also visit the Tuoi Tre Start-Up Award 2024 page at tuoitre.vn to download the registration form.

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