Nearly 200 students from 20 public and private educational institutions will take part in the CGS Business Summit 2026, a three-day business idea competition aimed at promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, and problem-solving among young people.
Organised by Chittagong Grammar School (CGS), the summit will be held from 17 to 19 September under the theme “Design Your Future”.
The event will focus on sustainability, entrepreneurship, and youth empowerment, giving students an opportunity to develop and present business ideas and explore how they can be turned into viable ventures.
The organisers announced the programme at a press conference on Monday at the CGS Surson Road campus in Chattogram.
Students from Grades 7 to 12 and diploma programmes will participate in the competition. The summit will feature more than 12 mentors, four experience-based workshops, and opportunities for participants to interact directly with entrepreneurs, investors, and industry professionals.
Speaking at the press conference, Ruhbayna M Chowdhury, head of Upper School at CGS, said the initiative was designed to provide students with an opportunity to transform innovative ideas into practical solutions.
“Developing an entrepreneurial mindset from an early age makes it easier for young people to take their ideas forward and scale them in the future,” she said.
She added that traditional classroom learning alone was not enough to prepare young people for the rapidly changing world, noting that students need to learn how to identify real-world problems and develop creative and commercially viable solutions to address them.
The organisers said the summit had already demonstrated its potential to connect student innovators with the wider business community. At last year’s competition, a student won the top prize with an idea for producing biodegradable tea bags and was subsequently connected with major business groups, including Finlay and Ispahani, to explore the idea further.
According to the organisers, the initiative is intended to go beyond a conventional business competition and create a bridge between students and the real business world. Under the theme “Design Your Future”, the summit will combine three key areas – Sustainability, Entrepreneurship, and Empowerment.
Participants will work on business challenges involving areas such as economics, finance, marketing, business strategy, technology, and sustainable development.
Through team-based activities and practical problem-solving, they will develop skills in analytical thinking, creativity, communication, leadership, and decision-making.
The programme will also feature interactive workshops conducted by industry professionals, while successful entrepreneurs and startup founders will share their experiences of building businesses, overcoming challenges, and navigating the path to success.
The inaugural ceremony will be held at Chittagong Club on 17 September, while the main competition will be held at the CGS campus. The competition will culminate in a final round where selected teams will present solutions to real-life business scenarios before a panel of evaluators.
The winning teams will compete for a total prize pool of Tk100,000, with the first prize carrying Tk50,000, the second Tk30,000, and the third Tk20,000.
