InclusionX, a non-profit startup working towards the inclusion of the differently-abled has received Tk10 lakh in funding from the Innovation Design & Entrepreneurship Academy (iDEA) Project of the ICT Division.
Labib Tazwar Rahman, the founder of the startup confirmed the matter to Dhaka Tribune.
According to the young serial entrepreneur, this will make online therapy and psychiatry services affordable and accessible to Bangladeshis who cannot afford the high cost of fees elsewhere.
“InclusionX received its first government funding on Wednesday. We are overjoyed to have the Bangladeshi government as a supporter of our mission,” he told Dhaka Tribune.
“Everyone you know, including yourself will benefit from this. I have myself seen a therapist for advice related to academics, career, time management, productivity, concentration, social media, fitness, mood — and basically everything I had on my mind. Most of my friends have also seen a therapist for managing anxiety, depression, low self-esteem — or just to get advice on how to be the best version of themselves,” he further said.
If anyone wants to access a therapist over Zoom, they can send a "Hello" message to the InclusionX Facebook page and they will send a Zoom link to join and talk to a therapist, assured Labib.
iDEA is a government project under the ICT that provides pre-seed (idea) funds to startups.
Pre-seed or idea-stage startups can apply for grants up to Tk10 lakh in iDEA. Seed and growth-stage startups can apply for such funds through Startup Bangladesh Limited.
As per its official government website, the program aims to create an accelerator and its accompanying ecosystem of entrepreneurs, investors, mentors, advisors to promote Bangladesh as a global hub for tech entrepreneurship.
It plans to do so by actively incubating collaboration with entrepreneurs, industry, academia, financial institutions, and government to stimulate innovation and to create the appropriate business, operational and regulatory frameworks to support bold dreams.
iDEA was started with the belief that venture capital investments spur innovation, create employment, and make a significant contribution to economic growth.
With Bangladesh’s population growing, globalization rapidly changing the international business climate, and sometimes making it uncertain, a culture of innovation can provide its own energy for Bangladesh by affording opportunities for our young entrepreneurs.
It also believes the impact of government intervention in fostering an innovation economy has successfully created venture capital ecosystems in many countries.
The government of Bangladesh hopes to replicate similar success by founding Startup Bangladesh that will catapult its young generation of entrepreneurs to the next level, who can accelerate the pace of innovation and lead the economy to a self-sustained path to growth.
Through iDEA Accelerator, the government aims to nurture innovative ideas in the areas of education, agriculture, health, financial services, e-commerce, e-governance, environment, transport, and infrastructure. Evaluate concepts based on potential impact, execution strategy, and public benefit.
InclusionX has been creating videos on mental health as well as the inclusion of differently-abled individuals on Facebook and Instagram. In 2021, their content had reached over 6 million people. They have also given mental health first aid training in-person to around 2,100 students and teachers so far.
Operational since 2015, it co-hosted events with large schools like Viqarunnisa and institutions like Shilpakala Academy with over 30,000 attendees, making mainstream events friendly for differently-abled individuals.
InclusionX is also connected to over 200 mental health and disability-related institutions. They have partnered with Stanford University School of Medicine to create a geo-map of disability-related institutions for the first time in Bangladesh.
This Stanford collaboration also resulted in an Android mobile game that can be used to diagnose autism in children as early as 18 months old.
“Joy of Computing” is one of its projects where students from universities and colleges are trained to give computer lessons twice a week in 3D modelling and animation to students with autism, down syndrome, and cerebral palsy. This project, which started in 2016, has given training to around 300 people.
The startup also provides training to parents of neurodivergent children on menstrual health and at-home care and has been funded by EMK Center since 2015.
Recently, they have also been supported by the Haas Center for Public Service at Stanford University.
