INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA Celebrates Youth Entrepreneurship in Doha
February 20, 2024
INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA held its 2023 Youth Entrepreneurship Celebration (YEC) in Doha, Qatar, this week, including the launch of INJAZaTHON and the regional Company of the Year competition. Originally scheduled for October 2023, INJAZ rescheduled YEC due to conflict that affected students in the region. Hosted by INJAZ Qatar, YEC immersed high school and university students from 13 Arab countries in an entrepreneurial ecosystem where they interacted with business professionals, mentors, educators, and other students from the region.
Day 1: Kick-off and Booth Set Up
YEC opened with an introduction to the Global Alumni Movement with JA Worldwide’s Sarah Rapp. Students then visited the 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic and Sports Museum. When they returned, they set up booths for the expo, where they’ll present and display their businesses.
High School Student Companies
Bahrain: NE'MA produces non-toxic organic paints made from recycled food waste.
Egypt: Exten-desk expands individuals’ workspaces to 50x30cm and fits on any surface, solving concerns about crowded and cramped work areas.
Kuwait: B-One created the B-Wrap, a reusable and sustainable alternative for plastic wrap.
Lebanon: GuideMe’s headband assists visually impaired individuals by providing navigation assistance.
Morocco: Smart Tourism Company focuses on promoting the tourism sector using smart technological solutions, making cultural knowledge and heritage accessible for all.
Oman: Warif developed and sells a safe, natural pest repellant made from recycled materials.
Palestine: Purecent developed a device that measures water levels in tanks and tests to detect water contamination in each tank.
Qatar: Fazza’s robot uses AI technology to test humidity in soil and the atmosphere in agricultural lands using solar panels.
Saudi Arabia: Carrot Vision developed an AI-powered vehicle-mounted device that quickly assesses surface safety desert driving and camping through cameras and sensors.
UAE: I-Influence launched a digital platform designed to enhance the lives of micro-influencers by providing them with a range of services that can guide them through various ventures.
University Student Companies
Algeria: The Wink app enables online group buying, a new way to shop online in Algeria and the MENA region.
Bahrain: Fornature specializes in transforming paper and other waste materials into unique furniture pieces.
Egypt: To Green created three advanced devices to combat carbon dioxide emissions in the air.
The 1_Cee device converts Co2 emitted in factory smoke into fuel.
The 2_CDF filter captures carbon dioxide from car exhaust.
The 3_CDAF filter captures Co2 from atmospheric air.
Kuwait: Raskla collects plastic waste and recycles it into sustainable eco-friendly fabric to save the planet and build a future where discarded plastic is reborn as sustainable fashion.
Morocco: REBRICK transforms textiles into eco-friendly bricks that provide both thermal and acoustic insulation.
Oman: Uniti develops products using nanotechnology to add new characteristics or even reinforce already existing characteristics in nanomaterials, including those for cleaning, self-sanitizing, and high-chemical stability. Uniti’s first product is a self-cleaning silicone intended for the construction industry.
Palestine: SAFETECH’s flagship product, the ProHelm, boasts an advanced safety system that detects threats to worker safety. When the system senses dangerous situations, it alerts the supervisor with the worker’s name and precise location, enabling swift protective action.
Qatar: Recruitment platform Khatwa connects employers and job seekers seamlessly. The company aims to enhance job opportunities for diverse categories, including individuals with disabilities, and facilitate their interaction with employers through its innovative digital platform.
Saudi Arabia: Ecolyst reduces harmful emissions and energy consumption through its environmentally friendly catalyst materials made from renewable sources and natural material.
Tunisia: Supclay is a clay-based cement that is suitable for construction, renovation, and aesthetics, with a mission to promote sustainability in the construction industry.
UAE: Crowd-investing platform Weshare connects individual investors and other money savers with potential SMEs and investment programs.
Sudan*: Zat provides training and employment services to the animal health sector, bridges qualification and training gaps for veterinary professionals, and connects them with job opportunities.
*This is the first time a team from Sudan has joined YEC.
Day 2: February 19 – INJAZaTHON
The inaugural INJAZaTHON kicked off on Monday morning. Although students arrived in national teams, INJAZaTHON sorted them into entirely new teams to tackle two hackathon challenges, one for high school students and one for university students. INJAZaTHON gives students the opportunity to learn new skills in ideation, problem solving, project management, business model implementation and scalability, and presenting and applying them immediately.
High school students faced the Sustainability Innovation Challenge, which asked them to envision sustainable solutions that solved issues using waste reduction, green technology, or sustainable food systems.
The University students' challenge ask students to formulate business strategies for an actual company, with judges assessing proficiency in essential skills. The challenge emphasized incorporating AI, prioritizing sustainability, and fostering value creation. Participants gained exposure to skills that empowered their innovation and design thinking, covering ideation, business model development, scalability, implementation, and presentation.
Each YEC partner presented content focusing on these skills in sessions throughout the day, beginning with Nestle for the high school track and Investcorp for the university track. FedEx (high school) and Google (university) presented on ideation, or how to come up with solutions; the Project Management Institute Educational Foundation (PMIEF) presented at both levels on how teams can use project management to develop and refine business solutions; Mastercard discussed how teams can implement and scale business models; and Boeing (high school) and FedEx (university) wrapped up the day’s sessions with tips on making successful presentations.
In the afternoon, the teams presented their ideas to judges. The partner presenters evaluated each team, both university and high school, on problem refinement, solution alignment, project management skills, business model development, presentation and communication, creativity, team collaboration, sustainability, and overall impact.
The day ended at the National Museum of Qatar, where students networked with one another, business leaders, and officials, including INJAZ Qatar founding member and Global Business Hall of Fame Laureate Sheikha Hanadi bint Nasser Al Thani, before dinner and the INJAZaTHON award ceremony.
INJAZaTHON Awards: High School Track
The FedEx Global Possibilities Award recognizes the team that excels in ideation and demonstrates exceptional creativity, problem-solving, and innovation, in alignment with FedEx’s leadership.
Winner: Team 5, comprised of students from Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bahrain, for Ecopak, a reusable and sustainable packaging alternative.
The Nestle Sustainability Award recognizes the team that best exhibits sustainability in a viable way.
Winner: Team 4, comprised of students from Lebanon, UAE, Egypt, Morocco, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, for S-Guiders, a company that recycles used consumer goods.
The PMIEF Excellence in Project Management Award recognizes the team that showcases the most innovative and viable project model development.
Winner: Team 2, comprised of students from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, UAE, and Lebanon NETerial, eco-friendly packaging made from recycled fishing nets.
The Mastercard Innovation Award recognizses the team that excels in translating innovative ideas into effective and feasible solutions, leveraging Mastercard's expertise and refinement implementation.
Winner: Team 6, comprised of students from Qatar, Egypt, Oman, Palestine, and Bahrain, for For the Future, implementers of energy-collecting pressure plates.
The Boeing Presentation Mastery Award recognizes the team that demonstrates a thorough understanding of presentation guidelines and requirements, including creative visuals, clarity, and a compelling narrative.
Winner: Team 3, comprised of students from Bahrain, Morocco, Qatar, Palestine, Oman, and Egypt, for Re-Diesel, a company that turns used vegetable oil into fuel for vehicles.
INJAZaTHON Awards: University Track
The AI Spark Award by Google acknowledges Google's role in inspiring creative AI-powered solutions during the ideation phase.
Winner: Team 5, comprised of students from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia, and Bahrain.The PMIEF Project Excellence Award recognizes the team that demonstrated the most innovative and viable project plan development, reflecting project management tools and techniques.
Winner: Team 1, comprised of students from Sudan, Morocco, Kuwait, Bahrain, Palestine, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia.The PMIEF Innovation Award acknowledges the team excelling in translating innovative ideas into effective and feasible solutions, leveraging PMIEF’s expertise in refinement and implementation.
Winner: Team 3, comprised of students from Oman, Morocco, Algeria, UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Palestine.The FedEx Global Possibilities Pitch Award highlights FedEx's focus on helping participants prepare excellent presentations with a global perspective. Winner:
Team 4, comprised of students from UAE, Tunisia, Palestine, Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Algeria.The Value Creation Excellence Award by Investcorp underscores Investcorp's emphasis on value creation within the context of the presented business case.
Winner: Team 4The Sustainability Award by Nestle recognizes the team making significant contributions to sustainability through their project, incorporating sustainable practices into every element and milestone.
Winner: Team 4
Day 3: INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA Company of the Year
The third and final day of YEC was all about the JA Company Program. University student companies presented on stage in the morning while high school student companies spoke with judges at their expo booths. In the afternoon, the roles reversed, with the high school teams presenting on stage and the university teams in the expo.
After lunch, each student company met with the judges to answer questions about their companies based on judges’ reading of their company reports, their presentations, and their interactions at the expo.
YEC wrapped up with the awards gala, which included the top INJAZaTHON awards, as well as the JA Company Program awards for both high school and university tracks.
INJAZaTHON Great Minds Awards
These awards recognized the judges’ top teams from the high school and university tracks.
High school track winner: Team 6, For the Future (students from Qatar, Egypt, Oman, Palestine, and Bahrain)
University track winner: Team 3 (students from Oman, Morocco, Algeria, UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Palestine)
JA Company Program Awards
Product of the Year
High School: GuideMe, INJAZ Lebanon
University: Fornature, INJAZ Bahrain
High School INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA Company of the Year: Waref, INJAZ Oman
University INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA Company of the Year: Supclay, INJAZ Tunisia
What’s next?
As the high school track INJAZ Al-Arab JA MENA Company of the Year, Waref will join JA Africa Company of the Year Mobile Intelligence Technologies, JA Americas Company the Year Manik, JA Europe Company of the Year Isometricks, Junior Achievement USA champion Youthful Thinkers, and JA Asia Pacific Company of the Year SIEVASCO to compete for the De La Vega Global Entrepreneurship Award in April.