New incubator to open near Gaza border

Gaza border incubator Photo: Orchid
Gaza border incubator Photo: Orchid

The SouthUp incubator is designed for startups in agrotech, sustainability, cleantech, homeland security, software, and more.

Communities bordering the Gaza Strip usually make the headlines in stories about terrorism, attacks, and tunnels. A new initiative aims to change that a technology incubator named SouthUp the first technology incubator in the southern border communities.

The parties involved in establishing the new incubator are the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council, Sapir Academic College, OurCrowd partner Wolf Bielas, Qualcomm cofounder Andrew Viterbi (who recently donated $50 million to the Technion Israel Institute of Technology), the Jewish Agency, San Diego Jewish Federation high-tech entrepreneurs, Amdocs and others. The incubator is designed for new companies in agrotech, sustainability, cleantech, homeland security, software, etc. The incubator is slated to get underway in September.

SouthUp chairman and FST Biometrics cofounder Shahar Belkin said today, "There's no doubt that the difficult security situation of the communities on the Gaza Strip border has often taken priority over other important issues, such as economic and employment security for residents of the area. There's still no solution to the dispute, but we believe that we are capable of significantly strengthening these communities economically, and encouraging companies to move from the center of Israel to outlying areas, while keeping the young generation in the south"

Belkin added, "What we're doing here is the new Israeli patriotism. SouthUp's technological incubator will bring the economy's growth engine to the Gaza Strip border communities. In our vision, young startups beginning at the incubator will locate themselves in the Negev, and in a few years, become high-tech companies, and take an active part in creating jobs, promoting technological education, and forming a lively community of innovation outside of Tel Aviv."

Sapir Academic College President Prof. Omri Yadlin said, "The incubator fits the college's entrepreneurial and innovative character like a glove. The incubator promotes our main goal educational and cultural advancement and economic development in the area near the Gaza Strip border. Up until now, high-tech graduates of the college have had to move north. The incubator will enable interested students to become employees during their studies, and help our graduates stay here and live in the area by joining the incubator as entrepreneurs."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 19, 2016

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016

Gaza border incubator Photo: Orchid
Gaza border incubator Photo: Orchid
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