Startup culture in Hong Kong is not as widespread as in the West.

Despite the city's well-developed infrastructure and a free flow of information, high startup costs and low entrepreneur experience are among the biggest problems facing budding entrepreneurs.

Google and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have launched a program called "Empowering Young Entrepreneurs" (EYE) program to help students and young business aspirants to innovate and connect with the global community.

"In Hong Kong, a lot of young people have brilliant business ideas, but lack the skills and resources to put their plans into practice" says Kevin Au, director of the CUHK's Center for Entrepreneurship.

The EYE program offers a series of training and mentorship, workshops, conferences and networking opportunities, as well as lectures by leading entrepreneurs and Google staff.

"There's still much to be done to build a better ecosystem for local entrepreneurs. Through the EYE program, we want to address the challenges entrepreneurs face by inspiring them with a positive mindset, empowering them with multidisciplinary skills, and providing valuable networking opportunities," says Dominic Allon, managing director of Google Hong Kong.

More than 900 youngsters, aged 18 to 35, have applied to join the program. After completing pre-mentorship training, the participants will form teams to work on their ideas and business proposals.

In June, 80 teams made presentations before a panel of judges, and 40 top performing teams were selected to join a one-on-one mentorship by veteran entrepreneurs and professionals.

The final six outstanding teams will go on a sponsored visit to Google's headquarters at Silicon Valley in the US to link up with the global community of entrepreneurs and investors in October.

"As the Internet's rapid development has reshaped the way businesses are run, technical skills, such as coding, have become a crucial factor for business operations," Au says, adding that entrepreneurs nowadays need to develop themselves as all-rounders.

This is where Google comes in. The technology giant provides not only financial support to the program, but also knowledge from its technology and management experts.

Daniel Chan, chief executive officer of Cashyou, is one entrepreneur who has developed a mobile app with his team from scratch.

Cashyou is a mobile app aiming to develop, through working closely with local banks, a system of accounts that would enable financial transactions without incurring hefty fees for money transfer.

"We came up with this idea during the program (EYE). With the support of successful entrepreneurs and Google, we've managed to put this into practice within a short time," Chan recalled.

Au hopes that various groups and associations will work together to help foster a better ecosystem of entrepreneurs in Hong Kong.

Participants in the 'Empowering Young Entrepreneurs' program, aimed at linking budding entrepreneurs with the community, come from a wide spectrum of the information technology sector.

(HK Edition 09/19/2014 page9)