India’s Permanent Leadership of SCO Startup & Innovation Working Group

Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his visit to Kazakhstan on Monday after attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit 2025, where he held bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

For India, the summit was not about a new announcement but about a reaffirmation of its established leadership in innovation diplomacy. Since 2022, India has been the permanent chair of the SCO Special Working Group (SWG) on Startups and Innovation, an institutional role that was highlighted once again at the Astana Summit.

What is the SCO SWG on Startups and Innovation?

The Special Working Group on Startups and Innovation was proposed by India in 2020 and formally established at the SCO Heads of State Summit in Samarkand on 16 September 2022. Importantly, at the time of its creation, all SCO Member States agreed that the group would be permanently chaired by India (Startup India).

The group fosters cross-border collaboration, incubation support, and knowledge sharing among SCO members. With India at the helm, the SWG has become a platform to export the Startup India model, launched in 2016, to one of the world’s largest regional blocs — representing 40% of the global population and nearly 25% of GDP.

PM Modi’s SCO 2025 Diplomacy

During the 2025 Astana Summit, Modi’s engagements with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin reinforced India’s strategic approach to Eurasia. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, Modi emphasized startups, innovation, youth empowerment, and shared heritage as areas of priority for the SCO (MEA, Sept 1, 2025).

By placing innovation in his official address, Modi demonstrated that India’s permanent chairmanship is not symbolic but an active tool to promote entrepreneurship-led cooperation and market access across Eurasia.

Why Has India Been the Permanent Chair Since 2022?

India’s permanent role reflects both political consensus within SCO and its consistent leadership since 2020. After the formal creation of the SWG at Samarkand, India was mandated to chair the body permanently — a rare distinction within SCO working groups.

This mandate was a recognition of India’s robust startup ecosystem — the world’s third-largest, with over 180,000 startups and 100+ unicorns — and of New Delhi’s commitment to using entrepreneurship as a bridge for economic growth and regional stability.

India’s Startup Leadership in SCO: A Timeline

• 2020 — Proposal & Forum 1.0: India proposed the SWG and hosted the first SCO Startup Forum, engaging 2,600+ participants and 90 startups.
• 2021 — Forum 2.0: India expanded participation to 5,800+ stakeholders, 169 startups, and launched the SCO Startup Hub.
• 2022 — Samarkand Summit & Ambassadors’ Meet: The SWG was formally created, with India mandated as permanent chair. Ambassadors from 15 SCO states visited Startup India HQ in New Delhi to share best practices.
• 2022 — Mentorship Series: India organized 100+ hours of mentoring on scaling, fundraising, and global expansion for SCO startups.
• 2023 — Hybrid SWG Meeting & Forum 3.0: India chaired innovation deliberations, hosted physical events in New Delhi, and showcased IIT Delhi’s FITT incubator.
• 2025 — Astana Summit: India’s permanent chairmanship was reaffirmed at heads-of-state level, reinforcing its leadership role.

Why India’s Permanent Chairmanship Matters

India’s role as permanent chair of the SCO SWG on Startups and Innovation gives it a unique platform to:

• Shape cross-border incubation and acceleration programs.
• Facilitate the creation of a potential SCO Startup Fund for early-stage ventures.
• Promote women and youth entrepreneurship across the bloc.
• Drive joint R&D collaborations in AI, green technologies, and digital infrastructure.

For Eurasia, this means structured cooperation led by a country that has built one of the world’s most dynamic startup ecosystems. For India, it strengthens its startup diplomacy and opens new markets in Central Asia, Russia, and China.

Shaping the Future of Eurasian Innovation

Looking ahead, India is expected to advance new initiatives under the SWG in 2025–26, including cross-border hackathons, startup residencies, and co-investment platforms. These will allow entrepreneurs across SCO member states to collaborate, innovate, and scale in global markets.

As Modi departed Astana, the reaffirmation of India’s permanent chairmanship of the SWG stood out as a symbol of continuity. It reflects how startups and innovation are no longer side-themes but central to regional cooperation and global diplomacy.