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Technology is key to keeping pace with the growing need for a strong and trustworthy relationship between the government and the public. We believe that we can unite all parties in a dynamic collaboration to stimulate civic connection. The GovTechNL programme accelerates the development of new products, systems and concepts for bright and positive cooperation in the public domain. We strive to play a leading role and are highly motivated to grow the best possible community for civic innovation.

GovTechNL is full of events and activities for different types of collaboration! We brought the community together at The Hague Tech on September 13 for an interactive session where all participants had a chance to share their ideas and collaborate with others who are enthusiastic about tech in government.

The objectives of the last interactive session were: 

Bring people together to further develop the GovTechNL community

Articulate the purpose, function and what is possible for GovTechNL

The session was facilitated by Matt Barnaby and Svitlana Khrystenko, who led the crowd through a series of activities to foster brainstorming and active interactions between participants.

The session began with the quick speed networking. Participants were tasked to find a partner and talk on a certain topic for 2 minutes, then switch to another participant. The questions included: 

If you were to implement a new law what could it be?

All your non-work related apps vanish - what is the first one you reinstall and why?

After an energetic start the crowd divided into several small groups to ensure active participation. They now brainstormed on these questions: 

How can we make sure that GovTechNL is the worst possible thing you've been involved in?

What do we need to do as a community to prevent it from happening?

At the end of the exercise, they presented their outcomes. Several important outcomes were:

Throughout the session participants also created inspiring messages to themselves as they were writing them 2 years later. What was achieved during these 2 years at GovTechNL? What are we proud of? What lessons did we learn along the way that we'd like to advise our current 2022 selves on? You can find the full cards on 

 where we collected all the results from the in-person session. 

The challenge that GovTechNL faces now is in bringing the public and the government together to accelerate the development of new products, systems, and concepts for bright change in the society. The last activity helped participants think about this challenge from the perspective of opportunities. With how might we questions, they turned challenges into opportunities. With what if we questions, they continued thinking about possible solutions and dropped some valuable ideas on how to go about pursuing these opportunities.

This session was a first step toward creating an innovation hub dedicated to collaboration between the public and the government. According to the steering committee on the initiative, which will meet in the coming weeks, many more announcements are forthcoming, including news of the official launch of a new brand identity, participation in the GovTech summit and more. We look forward to hearing your thoughts about this initiative and hope that you will participate in its development.

We brought the community together at The Hague Tech on September 13 for an interactive session where all participants had a chance to share their ideas and collaborate with others who are enthusiastic about tech in government.

Co-creation is key to innovation

Daniël Steginga and Alwin Veldboom have supported the Municipality of The Hague with formulating a Challenge for Startup in Residence with the Worldstartup Challenge Discovery & Definition process. Startups can now register until 12th of May 2022 with a solution to the question: how can we make it easier for people with occupational limitations to find a suitable job and to fill it in a sustainable way?

The Municipality of The Hague wants to help more people with occupational limitations find work. There are approximately 25,000 job seekers in the Municipality of The Hague. These are people who ask the municipality for help and receive financial support. More than 10,000 people with occupational limitations are still looking for a job.

Social issues can be complex, solutions cannot only be conceived and developed internally within a single organization. There is a need for collaboration with outside parties, such as start-ups or scale-ups. To recruit and select the right parties, the first step was to clarify and formulate the challenge. For this reason, the Challenge Discovery & Definition trajectory was introduced. In Discovery sessions, we discussed the various challenges surrounding an inclusive labor market in The Hague, with various groups of colleagues within the municipality. A shortlist of topics was made, based on certain criteria, which were used as the focus during each Definition session. Possible challenge questions were formulated, the scope and the innovation objective was determined, solution criteria and success factors were devised, stakeholders identified and an extensive Challenge briefing was drawn up.

Successful innovation projects start with a clearly defined (social) challenge and involvement of internal and external innovators. Looking for a good start to your innovation project or program? WorldStartup and Outside Inc. are very happy to support you further.

Daniël Steginga and Alwin Veldboom have supported the Municipality of The Hague with formulating a Challenge for Startup in Residence with the Worldstartup Challenge Discovery & Definition process.

Governments' innovation starts with understanding your challenges

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International and The Hague-based students, professionals, startups, enthusiastic individuals, teams, engineers, programmers, designers, business and tech experts from any other relevant field per challenge.

For whom

Opportunity lead

Hackathon for Good - The Hague 

Hackathon for Good is an open invitation to anyone who is interested in solving societal challenges by using data and AI.

Hackathon for Good - The Hague

I'm interested

The Netherlands' Biggest Matchmaking Event Goes INTIMATE

We are taking over the organisation of the upcoming edition of Impact Capital Tour, with close collaboration with Gemeente Den Haag, The Hague Business Agency and ImpactCity.

While we have earned ourselves a reputation for organising large-scale matchmaking events, our focus has always been around making meaningful (curated) connections in informal settings. Hence, we have decided to mix up our year calendar by adding smaller theme-based editions.

What does Capital Tour look like in its most curated form while prioritizing intimacy, connection and experience? Read on!

We are choosing 20 of the most promising Dutch and International startups that are already doing business in The Netherlands around the following themes, for this edition:

Whether you’re raising investment right now or just looking to explore opportunities and warm up to some investors for future rounds, you are ready for taking on investment. This means you have a full-time team, product-market fit, clearly identifiable advantage, and proven traction. Traction can be in terms of significant revenue or paid pilots, or previously raised investment. You’ll have a chance to meet up to 10 investors specifically from these areas, making the matchmaking tailor-made to your needs.

[15:00 – 15:45] Kick-off, Inspiration, Practicalities

Together with all the founders, investors, and partners, we kick off the day together. We’ll explain more about what to expect and share some last tips before you head off to meet startups or investors. We’ll share inspiration with some special guests.

During Capital Tour, you’ll have the opportunity to create your own personal ‘Tour de Funding’ and have funding-focused speed date sessions with investors at the event venue. Based on your funding profile – you’ll receive a questionnaire after you registered – our team will rate your investment readiness. Once selected, you’ll receive access to our matchmaking tool through which you can match with investors or potential business partners. You will also have the opportunity to send personal meeting requests to investors. Once the investors accept your request, the meeting will take place on the event day.

We are giving founders the power to choose the setting of their informal meetings. Do you want to sit down, grab a coffee or take a stroll? It’s up to you!

[17:45-till late ] Christmas Party & Networking drinks

We’ll be joined by the larger Innovation Community of The Hague, as this also happens to be the official Christmas Party for Gemeente Den Haag and its partners in the entrepreneurship field. There will be a brief celebratory plenary session alongside drinks. This is your chance to meet other participating founders, investors, and innovators.

Throughout the years’ lots of investors have participated in Capital Tour editions. These investors are all established Business Angels, VCs, Corporate Venture Funds, and other financial institutions, meeting with startups that are shaping our future through our event. Curious to see who they are? Meet some of our previous investors 

Are you interested to join Capital Tour as an investor? We’d like to meet you!

Contact Aditya Putta (Programme Manager) for more information at aditya@worldstartup.co

We are choosing 20 of the most promising Dutch and International startups that are already doing business in The Netherlands to match them with investors most relevant to them.

Opportunity Lead

Impact Capital Tour

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Basecamp

Exploration phase startups

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People who want to create real impact with scalable innovative ventures from the ground up.

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Problem Definition & Validation

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Ivana Dvořáková, founder of Terraz Food

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An all-inclusive support programme of up to 3 years from ready to market to sustainable growth.

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Partners of the GovTech NL

These and many other companies work together to ensure the hub is achieving its objectives.

Contribute to the transition. Join the community

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Centre for Civic Innovation

We gather a community of like-minded people in the GovTech sector

Find us here

About GovTech NL

GovTech NL is set to contribute to the innovation of our public sector.

Partners of Sustainable Aviation

This hub is a part of the Airport Technology LAB (ATL). ATL is supported by EFRO/ Kansen voor West.

Contribute to the transition. Meet RHIA or view our projects

Sustainable Aviation

Together We Make Innovation Fly

We innovate for

The future of aviation. To make it more sustainable and easier. 

” The idea for the company surfaced during his Masters where he worked on a project for Indonesia. During this project Rushabh was working on how to use plastic waste, which was abundant in Indonesia, and how to solve the issue of unsafe constructions. That is where he decided to design a brick that can be manufactured anywhere and people can use it, making it a solution for both problems. He saw a great potential for the project to be applied, strengthened by the positive feedback he received from his peers and professors. “

If there is a possibility of this happening, I want to take it up right now.

” Rushabh recalls his mentality being at the time. Seeing as he had just graduated his Masters, he had more time, less responsibilities, and he was very passionate about this project. “

I see a big necessity for such a project.

” Rushabh grew up in Mumbai, India. He studied to become an architect, and was deeply afflicted by how a majority of the city’s population lived in squatter settlements, and why architects or the architectural profession were not able to cater to these people. “

Besides it having been a successful project during my Masters, it is also the emotional side of knowing the context of where I grew up that motivates me.

” He came to The Netherlands in 2016, where he did his Masters at TU Delft. “

I hadn’t planned much in advance, but I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, so things just happened the way they happened.

It’s not just ment as a product, but something that enables people to unlock their capability of building their own house, and being able to afford their own house, while also being a hope for reducing pollution, and in that way also creating jobs.

In July 2019, Rushabh came into contact with WorldStartup. This happened coincidentally as his business partner Frans Taminiau knew Hub Jongen, the Startup Support Director at WorldStartup. WorldStartup saw the potential in “Conscious Designs”, and their views on impact were aligned. Rushabh mentions that the things that WorldStartup helped him the most with were making them feel comfortable as entrepreneurs, being patient with them, while also giving them really good training and mentorship. “

They followed up on us, and made sure that we were focused on the impact that we wanted to create.

” They gave them the tools to make their approach sharper. “

WorldStartup was more about lifting us rather than protecting us.

” is how Rushabh describes his company’s value. Not just as a product, but something that enables people to unlock their capability of building their own house, and being able to afford their own house, while also being a hope for reducing pollution, and in that way also creating jobs. “

Something that can serve people by helping people help themselves.

” The brick prototypes that Rushabh’s company currently produces in Rotterdam are made from waste plastics that they get from partnerships. One of their biggest partnerships is with a textile manufacturing company that has around 300 kilos of plastic waste every month. Currently they are doing a project in Ghana. Despite wanting to implement this project in Mumbai, Rushabh has done some analyses and came to the conclusion that it requires a lot more planning, as land is expensive and there are more challenges to overcome. That is why he thinks that before implementation in Mumbai, they will most likely develop their project in some smaller cities in India. Besides their project in Ghana, they have also explored ideas of bringing the project to Kenya, Malawi and Mexico, but they have decided to focus on one community first. The way they get plastic waste in African countries is different from in Europe, In Ghana, they are going to be working with informal waste recycling organisations in Accra to source their plastic waste, while supporting the local informal economy.

Rushabh is inspired by people who are less fortunate. A lot of people have the skills to help the people in need, but they either lack the motivation to use their skills in those sectors or circumstances hold them back. “

If I really want something to change, and I become the first domino to fall, I just need to do that once successfully and then the rest can follow.

” When asked about his greatest achievement thus far, Rushabh said that it has been about inspiring people, and being able to speak about these issues of waste plastic and affordable housing on global platforms. “

A lot of people have said that it is nice that younger people are taking up the fight against these problems.

” But Rushabh also mentioned that in terms of the company, achievements are not yet there, they have not made that impact yet. But someday they will.

Currently, Unibrick is a collaboration between “Conscious Designs” and “Community Plastics”, founded by Frans Taminiau, who is the founder of “Masters That Matter.” These companies together are going to create a new company which is going to be launched the coming months. The milestones for this year are therefore also setting up this company, andalso setting up a pilot project in Ghana in the next year and half. For the future, Rushabh’s goal is to have built over a million constructions with Unibricks in the next 10–15 years.

When asked what his main challenges were, he mentioned that as an architect, he was not trained to be an entrepreneur. “

There is no entrepreneurial course that is given to you at Architecture school in which you start thinking of your own ideas, from a concept level to an implementation level, while also thinking of all the other puzzle pieces of how a startup works.” Rushabh mentions his architectural studies.

“I knew I had the passion, but I had to learn the skills, and I am still learning.” For future entrepreneurs, and people looking to start a startup, Rushabh’s advice is to hang in there “It is a long run, not a sprint”, and also “It will always take more time and more money than you expect it to, but the journey is worth it.”

During this project Rushabh was working on how to use plastic waste, which was abundant in Indonesia, and how to solve the issue of unsafe constructions.

Taking on the fight of waste plastic and affordable housing on a global level with ‘Conscious Designs’

Today, March 8th, is International Women’s Day. To celebrate this occasion, we met up with an ambitious female entrepreneur from our WorldStartup community to get to know more about her entrepreneurial journey. Her name is Zina Abboud. 

Zina is the co-founder of the startup ‘Syrian Roots’, commonly known as ‘Leaves by Roots’. Zina and her co-founder, Rami Masri, seek to reduce income inequality, unite cultures and people and improve the food system through their business. Building a network and ecosystem that is advantageous to individuals and the community is crucial in order to appreciate diversity and tell a story.

Leaves by Roots offers Mediterranean cuisine through tasty and environmentally friendly meals. In April, you will be able to taste their meals for yourself, as they will be opening a shop in Almere Central Station, with plans to expand to other train stations in the coming years. But what story does Leaves by Roots want to tell? They tell a story of passion for food, inclusivity, new beginnings, giving back, and aspiring further. 

I am very happy that I followed my passion.  

Co-founding a food chain was not an initiative Zina had envisioned for her future. She graduated from Aleppo University with a degree in Business Management and began her marketing career for the next 11 years. Zina didn't really discover her passion for cuisine until she moved to the Netherlands in 2015. She realized that through food, it would become simpler and quicker for her to acclimate to Dutch society. Yet Zina was confronted with a challenging decision: continue working as a marketer or start a new business in the Netherlands, where she had no prior connections and knew neither the language nor the culture. She took a leap of faith and launched her own catering business. 

For eight years, Zina dedicated her time to growing her catering business. The difficulty: Zina was a lone wolf. Still, she persevered and saw her company succeed to the point where she published her own cookbook on Syrian cuisine in 2018. It was so successful that the Dutch PM Mark Rutte invited her to The Hague for an award ceremony in honour of her book, she was repeatedly invited to cook for the Royal Dutch Family, and she recently won two important awards: the ‘Viva400 award - category Zaken wonders’ and the ‘Beste newcomer 2023 - category founders.’

Fast forward to 2021, the idea of Leaves by Roots was lingering in co-founder Rami Masri’s mind. The original idea was: ‘a Syrian food chain run by newcomers’. When Rami originally asked Zina whether she wanted to work with him on this project, Zina said no. Yet, the idea of introducing Syrian cuisine in an international setting and having the restaurant chain run by newcomers like herself persisted in her mind. This initiative would give talented chefs the opportunity to prove themselves. Soon after, Rami got a call from Zina saying, 

. That day, Leaves by Roots set off on its adventure. 

“It is exciting times for Leaves by Roots,” 

says Zina. Their team, consisting of 12 members, was assembled only last year due to the pandemic. All members come from various backgrounds but are united by a common passion: their love for food. Together, they will help Zina and Rami bring to the Dutch table the original taste of Mediterranean cuisine.

We are at a point where we can say, ‘We are ready!' 

If you spot Leaves by Roots at Almere Central Station, you will notice that the menu, the decorations, and the atmosphere, are all a fusion of Dutch and Syrian culture. You might wonder, why a mix and not a fully Syrian version? 

“In the Netherlands, there is no difference between you and me. The Netherlands is about unity and inclusivity,

” explains Zina, and that is what Leaves by Roots wants to portray to its audience.

“Every day, we set goals, and if we succeed with one goal, we are satisfied,” 

explains Zina. Within the next three years, Leaves by Roots plans to open five additional stores at train stations in other Dutch cities. The long-term objective is to hand over ownership of these businesses to their present staff members, who are also newcomers to the Netherlands. With this in mind, co-founders Rami and Zina are fulfilling their vision of giving an opportunity to talented individuals. The present staff is receiving practical shop management training so that they are prepared to take over when the time comes. 

Leaves by Roots pursues an impact-driven goal rather than a profit-driven one. ‘Care for the people’ and ‘Care for the environment’ are the company's two guiding principles. By offering a workplace for newcomers and assisting local farmers wherever possible rather than purchasing from supermarkets, Leaves by Roots successfully incorporates the human element. They have a ‘zero-plastic’ policy, meaning that all of their packagings are made of cardboard, which demonstrates their concern for the environment.

“It is not only about promoting Syrian Roots, but also about helping people in need who are back in Syria,”

 explains Zina. Their most recent campaign, known as ‘the 10,000 meals challenge’ consists of selling 10 '000 meals within 2 months, where 100% of the profits will go to individuals impacted by the recent earthquake in Syria. By visiting their 

, you may learn more about this initiative and how you can contribute.

In the Netherlands, there is no difference between you and me. The Netherlands is about unity and inclusivity.

Several lessons were gained along the way as Leaves by Roots grew to where they are now:

The initial plan for Leaves by Roots was to have a completely vegetarian menu. However, before taking the decision to open a shop in Almere, both Rami and Zina began researching the city’s potential. They realized that the Netherlands as a whole can be considered a cultural hub where various nationalities thrive and coexist. They would have lost out on a sizable customer segment if they had advertised a vegetarian-only menu.

“You cannot say, ‘I know everything,’”

 says Zina. If you find yourself in a new setting with a business idea, study your new environment. Even after working for many years in the food industry, Zina continues to further her culinary education by enrolling in classes from a range of cuisines. There is no limit to education, every new skill you acquire expands your knowledge.

Despite the grand successes she achieved, Zina’s involvement in the 'one-person team' taught her that one shouldn't attempt to accomplish everything on their own. The quality of the task is always higher when there is teamwork. Zina's decision to participate in Leaves by Roots was significantly influenced by this insight.

We want to have meals that everybody can enjoy. This project is for everybody, not just for us.

This International Women's Day, we caught up with one of our female entrepreneurs from the WorldStartup community. Her story is as inspiring as her venture - Leaves by Roots. Discover how they're tackling income inequality, building bridges across cultures and improving the food system.

The Roots of Flavour: Exploring Culinary Traditions with Zina Abboud 

Access FLOW

This two-month online training, packed with highly intense and result-oriented sessions, prepares impact-driven startups for their expansion to the European market through The Hague's ecosystem in the Netherlands.

As part of the ongoing Indo-Dutch collaboration in the Agriculture Sector, 11 Ag, Food and Tech startups from India have been chosen to participate in the Digital Soft Landing Programme this autumn. This 4-step program aims to help Indian AgFood Tech startups validate their European value proposition through training and stakeholder introduction sessions with the local AgFood ecosystem in the Netherlands.

Meet the eleven ambitious startups from the Indian Agri & Food Tech sectors ready for their European expansion.

Nail the European market in 4 simple steps

We help you explore the Dutch startup ecosystem and provide you with market information on your sector. Once completed, you will enter the second step of the programme, where you will be given market preparation training on developing your value proposition for the European market. The next step consists of validating your developed value proposition with experts from the local ecosystem to refine this further and find the right market fit. Lastly, once you have a clear idea of how to enter the European market, our team will help you prepare a tailored roadmap for European expansion.

 Digital Fact Finding sessions to explore and learn about the AgFoodTech ecosystem

 Market readiness training to refine your value proposition tailored to the European market

 Match Making with local players in the ecosystem to validate your European value proposition 

 Develop a tailored European expansion plan 

The Hague is a throbbing city with millions of possibilities. There are passionate funding organisations that can back social and for-profit ventures.

— Avinash Kulkarni, CSO at Kaizen Secure Voiz (India)

The Digital Softlanding Programme is executed by a coalition of public and private organizations, such as 

The Royal Dutch Embassy of the Netherlands

. This coalition brings the right experience for Indian AgfoodTech start-ups to ensure successful expansion to the Netherlands and soft landing into the local AgFoodTech Ecosystem.

This program aims to help Indian AgFood Tech startups validate their European value proposition through training and stakeholder introduction sessions with the local AgFood ecosystem in the Netherlands.

Digital Soft Landing Programme - Focus: Indian AgFood Tech

Digital Soft Landing Programme

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The 5th edition of The Hackathon for Good in The Hague takes place online and at various exclusive working spaces during the 48h hack period.

The deadline for teams’ registration is 23:59 CET on the 13th of November 2022. In case you are looking for teammates or want to join an existing team, check out our tips in the 

There are 2 options to take part in the hackathon - Fast track and Full track. Each team can indicate their preference for time involvement upon registration or no later than by the end of the 19th of November.

The Fast track includes key events, mandatory activities and opportunities for 1-on-1 sessions with the challenge owners and mentors. Fast track teams can get tech support or ask questions via chat on the platform.

The Full track contains all activities from the Fast track and comes with an exciting support programme. This includes workshops on data processing, business and design, extended sessions with the challenge owners and open hours for consultations and technical support. The Full track gives you the advantage of having more time to craft your solution uninterrupted during the 48h hack period.

Hackathon for Good - The Hague #5

The demand for electricity is increasing. At the same time, the supply is also rising rapidly. The current electricity network cannot cope with this. That's why network companies are working hard to create a more extensive network that is strong enough. This is quite a challenge because we have to prevent the new grid from becoming too heavy or too expensive. In this way, we can prevent the energy bill from rising unnecessarily. How can we use innovative solutions to match the growing supply and demand for electricity and thus make the best use of the current grid?

Good ideas, designs and solutions need more than funding to be developed. Your project plan must also be ready and attractive to investors. Therefore, the Zeeland Public Interest Foundation and innovation hub Dockwize collaborate in this challenge.

Together we have developed a program to help you further elaborate and develop your proposal. This will significantly increase your chances of obtaining funding. The program is also part of what you ultimately hand in. Do you have an approved plan? Then you can apply for 50% to 70% funding (up to a maximum of € 1,000,000). On top of that, guidance is possible.

During the programme, you will evaluate your idea with business coaches and experts. Together you will work on the design in several sessions, after which you will present your idea to a jury. The jury will decide which project plans are ready for this program called 'Boost the grid', in which your project plan will be further developed.

Is your plan selected by the jury? Congratulations! During the programme you will work on making your idea even more concrete. During these work sessions, all project plans are prepared to be submitted to The Zeeland Public Interest Foundation.   

You are the change

Hackathon for Good - The Hague

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