The Indian – Dutch Centre of Expertise & Entrepreneurship

The Centre will be the gathering place for all relevant partners, a home for people and knowledge, the place where best practices will be combined. The Centre will facilitate (new) partnerships in programs and projects. We consider it as an essential component for creating networks, programs and projects that aim to a clean Ganga.

TIMELINE SCHEME ESTABLISHING THE CENTRE

TIMELINE Phase 1 2020 – 2025
Phase 1 START UP
2020-2023 *pre-start*	Regional and local fact findings on water, waste issues and Indian-Dutch corporations. Several visits to Rishikesh area and New Delhi
2020-2023 *pre-start*	Outcomes Establishment of Foundation Rishikesh Upstream.NL, Business plan, website, potential projects/ programs/ partners. Lessons learned, such as: 1. an Indian-Dutch CoE&E as intervention-, home(place) and knowledge base is a condition to start/ run projects 2. an integrated approach – projects as a chain of related interventions, water/ waste – is a condition for long term impact. This (new) approach is recommended by many parties but does not ‘fit’ into the main Dutch funding systems yet 3. Indian-Dutch collaboration programs are positively increasing, mainly coordinated out of IIT’s and based on research
2024	Enquiry Indian-Dutch partners search
2025 Q2	Mission Rishikesh, Haridwar, Roorkee, New Delhi. The main aims of this scoping mission are 1. Assessment of the status quo of water, waste programs in ‘our’ area 2. search/ meet potential partners and 3. find options for the CoE&E location
2025 Q2	Fill in governance structure(s)-names/ roles, MoU’s (results scoping mission)
2025 Q2	Business Plan adjustment (starting at Phase 2), based on: Indian and Dutch CoE&E best practices, the outcome of the enquiry partner search/ scoping mission and regional governmental priorities
2025 Q2	CoE&E location decision
2025 Q2	Indian-Dutch Program-agenda adjustment – fill in/plan Phase 2 + Phase 3
2025 Q2	Board-, funding-, MoU’s-, location and other agreements
2025 Q2	Start preparations inhousing
	*TOTAL €’s Phase 1 – in kind and funded** *info on request
Phase 2 CoE&E OPERATIONAL
2025 Q3/4	Official start CoE&E, start programs etc ..
Phase 3 PROJECTS
2025 Q4 2026 Q1	First water/ waste project with business partners as owners/ investors

PROFILE SCHEME OF THE CENTRE

The scheme below shows the concept profile of The Centre. The outcome of the enquiry – partner search / question list will ‘make’ the profile.

THE CENTRE of EXPERTISE & ENTREPRENEURSHIP – concept profile
a regional hub and a prominent meeting place
*as residence of/for*	headquarter of activities, interventions in programs and field projects as collaboration engine for long term sustainable impacts Indian – Dutch networks/ platforms citizens, communal and regional networks knowledge and research institutes participating in programs and projects laboratory and testing facilities, to monitor the (local) water qualities according international (water) standards home office for Dutch partners to reduce international trade- and investment barriers a SDG-house which is intended to support awareness and action of achieving the UN-Sustainable Development Goals
*where*	projects are facilitated (matchmaking, interventions, take-offs, control): River cleaning Water storage & retention Drinkingwater processing & distribution Sanitation & sewage infrastructure Wastewater processing Landfill cleaning Solid waste processing programs are developed and facilitated, being the best practices combinations of Indian and Dutch calls/ programs for education, research – applied science, innovation and entrepreneurship SDG/ ESG-conscious companies with robust strategies appeal responsible investments SME’s are supported to realize innovation opportunities Entrepreneurs – start-ups are connected to partners and networks Indian and Dutch (water and waste) expertise is exchanged structurally results of research, innovations and projects are demonstrated water and waste based study tracks of Indian & Dutch Universities are combined and international exchange for students is facilitated
*conditions & structure*	set-up and organized as a public – private partnership commitment of strong partners, who share the vision of the long-term role of The Centre in the region related to the water and waste challenges business model – best practices of Indian and Dutch Centres -money flows based on services it delivers and contributions it collects business models of the projects with good prospective