Telangana, UNICEF to set up India’s first Y-Hub for youth and adolescent in Hyderabad 

State government signed a Statement of Intent with UNICEF India to soon set up an exclusive innovation hub in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: Continuing efforts to strengthen the innovation ecosystem in Telangana, the State government on Friday signed a Statement of Intent with UNICEF India to soon set up an exclusive innovation hub in Hyderabad to foster innovation and entrepreneurial skills in the youth and the adolescent.

Named Y-Hub, this will be India’s first youth and adolescent focused innovation centre to promote problem-solving, creativity and design thinking, 21st century skills, innovation and entrepreneurship among young people in the State.

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The framework of Y-Hub was launched a few months ago with the Statement of Intent being signed on Friday between the State government, UNICEF India and YuWaah.

IT Minister KT Rama Rao, Principal Secretary (IT) Jayesh Ranjan, Telangana Chief Innovation Officer Dr. Shanta Thoutam, UNICEF India representative Cynthia McCaffrey and Telangana State Innovation Cell Education Lead Apoorva Bhasker Dasyam were present.

“This is truly a historic moment for the youth and innovation ecosystem of Telangana. We are happy to partner with UNICEF India to strengthen the efforts of promoting innovation and entrepreneurship from school age. Through Y-Hub, we will ensure our youth continuously innovates in a joyful manner and we will curate experiential methodologies for them to become tomorrow’s problem solvers,” the Minister said, adding that the hub would cultivate innovation by engaging schools, colleges and civic organizations of Telangana to serve every child and youth.

It would serve as a bridge between young innovators and the wider ecosystem, connecting them with government agencies, corporates, academia and other stakeholders to provide opportunities for collaboration, learning, impact and scaling, he said.

“The Telangana Y-Hub is envisioned as an innovation and incubation hub that nurtures young innovators and potential entrepreneurs. It provides a platform for them to learn, get inspired, innovate and collaborate as active change agents. By drawing on the ecosystem to enable opportunities that fosters the creative potential of young people, the Y-Hub envisages a generation of innovators in every district across the State,” McCaffrey said.

Y-Hub, which will provide access to resources and services including mentorship, skilling programmes, workshops, bootcamps, co-creating spaces and funding opportunities for young innovators, is also part of the YuWaah (Generation Unlimited India) initiative of UNICEF.