Deadline: 4 January 2017
The MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) for the Pan Arab Region, in partnership with Community Jameel, the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of Abdul Latif Jameel, and Zain Group, a leading mobile telecom innovator across the Middle East and Africa, announces the launch of the tenth edition of the MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition.
Program Details
- Informative roadshows promoting the competition will be held in Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar and the UAE, and seventy nine semi-finalist teams will be announced on February 10, 2017.
- The semi-finalists will be invited to attend pre-bootcamp activities scheduled to take place in February and March, 2017 in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The competition will culminate in a four-day event from April 24 to April 27, 2017, with the announcement of the competition winners scheduled to take place during the final award ceremony on April 27, 2017.
Award and Benefits
As with last year’s edition, this year’s competition includes three different tracks:
- Ideas Track: Three winning teams will be selected to receive cash prizes: $15K for first place, $10K for second place, and $5K for third place. Beside prize money, all qualifying teams would be benefiting from top tier training, coaching, mentorship, and great networking opportunities.
- Startups Track: Three winning teams will be selected and will receive cash prizes: $50K for first place, $10K for second place, and $5K the third place. Beside prize money, all qualifying teams would be benefiting from top tier training, coaching, mentorship, and great networking opportunities.
- Social Entrepreneurship Track: judges will select three winning teams that will receive cash prizes: $50K for first place, $10K for second place, and $5K for third place. Beside prize money, all qualifying teams would be benefiting from top tier training, coaching, mentorship, and great networking opportunities.
Each of the three tracks will award the first three ranked winners with cash prizes in addition to many other benefits including: top tier training, mentorship, coaching, media exposure, and great networking opportunities.
Eligibility Criteria
Ideas Track
- Each team should have at least two members
- Each team should at least include one Arab national
- Teams are not required to have a prototype, just an idea for a product or service is enough
- Similarly, teams are not required to have had any sales or have their company registered. The winners however will be required to incorporate their company in an Arab country before receiving their prize.
- The team must not have received any previous funding for the idea they are submitting
- The ideas can be in any industry
Startups Track
- Each team should have at least two members
- Each team should at least include one Arab national
- The team should have a working prototype and ideally some user traction and some sales
- The startup should not have generated more than $500K in annual revenues and must have been operational for less than 5 years
- The startup should be legally registered in an Arab country
- The startup can be in any industry
Social Entrepreneurship Track
- Each team should have at least two members
- Each team should at least include one Arab national
- As we are targeting startup stage social enterprises, your startup must be registered as a social enterprise
- Your startup can be either for-profit or not-for-profit
- Your core product or service must address a social problem targeting marginalised or disadvantaged individuals
- Your social enterprise can be in any industry
How to Apply
Interested applicants must apply online via given website.
Eligible Countries
Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Qatar and the UAE.
For more information, please visit Arab Startup Competition.