Arab Youth Startup Marketplace Showcases MENA's Young Entrepreneurs With a focus to bolster youth entrepreneurship in the region, the Arab Youth Center (AYC), has launched the platform to gather Arab entrepreneurs and investors.
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With a focus to bolster youth entrepreneurship in the region, the Arab Youth Center (AYC), an initiative under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, has launched the Arab Youth Startup Marketplace (AYSM) to cultivate a platform entrepreneurs and startups across the MENA region. The AYSM sought to highlight the work of Arab entrepreneurs, create a platform for young entrepreneurs to have access to networking and mentorship opportunities, and invigorates entrepreneurs to develop solutions with positive impact for the region.
At the inauguration, H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of. Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council asserted the youth's crucial role in developing solutions for the future. According to a release, he said, "This is what the UAE's leadership have believed in, and worked on enabling them to significantly contribute in the various aspects of life, and enhance their role in shaping the future. Whereas, H.E. Shamma Bint Suhail Bin Fares Al Mazroui, Minister of State for Youth, comments: "The MENA region is a hub for youthful energy and positive energy, and the Arab Youth Startup Marketplace is just a first pilot pull-up to gather these young people and understand how can we have more projects that help them go forward- how can we harness their power, their voice, their energy of young entrepreneurs."
Featuring 103 startups and more than 145 entrepreneurs from 18 countries, the AYSM catered to startups in the AR/VR, fintech, e-commerce, healthcare, social networking, logistics, gaming, IoT, travel and tourism sector, including a few startups such as Cogtalk, Eventtus, Jamalon, CashBasha, and much more. Supporting the event were government entities and more than 80 investors such as the Department of Economic Development, Dubai SME, twofour54, Abraaj, Wamda Capital, Emirates Foundation, and more.
