GOOD PRACTICE

The initiative aims to foster a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation across the city, in line with local high-potential sectors.

OBJECTIVES

The İzmir Entrepreneurial Ecosystem initiative aims to foster a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation in the city, in line with local high-potential sectors. Through different multi-sectoral entrepreneurship programmes and facilities, the Municipality of İzmir is committed to supporting entrepreneurs, especially social entrepreneurs and creative industries. This initiative encompasses several key projects such as: Izmir Entrepreneurship Centre, IzQ, Fikrimiz, Fab Lab Izmir, Izmir Film Office and Izmir Game Development Centre.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIONS CARRIED OUT

First, an Entrepreneurship Centre offering incubation programmes and coworking spaces for startups, internationalisation support and collaborations with experts and investors. İzQ Academy provides training and conferences, while İzQ Agency offers corporate communication consultancy services. Fab Lab İzmir is a manufacturing lab with advanced technologies that provides prototyping training and technical advice for entrepreneurs. İzmir Film Office offers comprehensive support for audiovisual production and collaboration with local talent in the film industry. Finally, the Game Development Centre (OYGEM) is a game development centre offering training programmes and networking events.

KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

The different initiatives that make up the project have been successful due to the comprehensive support provided to entrepreneurs through mentoring services, training, resources and facilities for the development of their projects. In addition, networking, collaboration between key actors and the thematic focus of each initiative contribute to the strengthening of Izmir’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

MAIN RESULTS ACHIEVED

The İzmir Entrepreneurial Ecosystem project has managed to achieve several milestones, such as developing a startup community, promoting cross-sector collaboration, facilitating innovation and R&D, supporting social impact enterprises, providing access to finance and investment, generating employment and economic growth, boosting creative industries, and fostering knowledge sharing and learning.