Dhaka University Innovation and Incubation Lab (DU i-Lab) is playing important role to materialise the innovative ideas of students by establishing bridge between existing probable problems and potential solutions with the collaboration of students and faculty members of all disciplines and fields, said DU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique.
“DU i-Lab has been established to provide institutional supports to the students having creative ideas and want to work on any innovative subject,” he told.
Terming it as a correlation activity, Arefin Siddique said DU i-Lab is working for creating a network between emerging entrepreneurs and business community.
World Bank Lead Economist in Dhaka Dr Zahid Hussain said the lab can create an opportunity to provide proper direction by conducting experiment on any innovative idea and advising support on different challenges and to successfully launch and manage the enterprises.
M Rashedur Rahman, Director of DU i-Lab, said the lab has been organising discussions, workshops and seminars to initiate a relation among the scholars and students in order to develop necessary policies, theories, methods, analyses, tools and techniques to support the movement of DU i-Lab towards facilitating the innovation and creativity development initiatives in the country.
Explaining the output of the seminars and workshops, he said participants of seminars highlighted challenges like lack of effective industry-academic partnership on funding, mindset and trust about research and its findings, awareness on innovation among the family level and lack of focusing on impact of innovation which are hindering innovative culture in the country.
“We should highlight on initiating open research and partnering with industry on impactful research to make effective the new ideas,” he said.
He also said teachers can play a change making role by leading and motivating students to take new initiatives.
