Dubai Pitch Challenge
October, 2018, Ramallah: In the last week of October, 2018, MENACatalyst struck again with its swarm of Demo events in the UAE. A spinoff of the Dubai Pitch Challenge, which took place in Ramallah, in early October - the event brought together 10 local startups with the most viable and high potential business ideas who were each awarded the chance to travel to the UAE to meet with some of the top entrepreneurs, VCs, and startups in the MENA region. Participating startups included: Play 3rabi, Red Crow, Kenz Woman, Matagir, Mustawd’a, Baby Fist, Lavender, Halalivery, Oregano, and Ezpilot.
The demo events kicked off on the 25th of October, with the first at in5 innovation hub, where startups pitched alongside UAE-based startups; followed by an eventful evening at the home of Rabea Ataya, Founder and CEO of Bayt.com. The evening commenced with startups pitching their business ideas to an audience of diaspora entrepreneurs and investors all eager to offer their guidance and support. Mr. Ataya expressed his intent to continuously support the startups whether by means of connections or through mentorship.
Participants also had the opportunity to meet with other successful diaspora entrepreneurs who are now at lucrative stages in their entrepreneurial endeavors, such as Talal Baya’a the founder of Bayzat (a technology company that provides its customers with insurance and HR solutions), and his co-founder Tarek Baya’a. Talal and Tarek shared a glimpse of their entrepreneurial journey in the UAE and offered startups counsel into the inner-workings of their team’s dynamism, all of which proved to be very relatable and practical advice which startups could build upon for their own businesses.
MENACatalyst’s roadshow of events also included an afternoon at MBC Group, where participants were invited to meet with members of the MBC Al Amal, and MBC Ventures’ team, who offered insightful presentations on MBC’s CSR work and also included presentations from some of the talent that MBC Al Amal has supported thus far. Startups were then offered the chance to pitch to an audience of MBC staff and partners and gain critical feedback on their businesses.
Moreover, startups also had the chance to pitch at Wamda Capital and gained valuable feedback from Wamda’s managing partners and staff alike. Just as well, startups also met with Walid Mansour, the managing partner of Middle East Venture Partners, who unveiled his judgement on what it takes to be the next big startup.
This challenge was not only an opportunity for exposure for these up and coming entrepreneurs, but a pivotal stepping stone in their entrepreneurial journeys. One thing is for certain, startups inside Palestine don’t necessarily have the upper-hand in comparison to their competitors outside the territories - which is all the more evident that in order for Palestinian startups to reach the same levels of success of that of their counterparts, then increased exposure, access to networks, funding and mentorship, are all indispensable determining factors that will in turn, give way to that success.
With that in mind, we must also not ignore the elephant in the room, that is, the occupation; since its presence is unequivocally the fundamental impediment obstructing, or at least curtailing, Palestinian entrepreneurs’ access to other markets. Finally, with the multitude of disadvantages hindering Palestinian entrepreneurs’ ability to compete on a global scale, we must ask ourselves - what other entrepreneurial gems are being squandered by the dark side of the occupation and how can we shed light on the talent that Palestine has to offer?
Our UAE trip was a great success, full of productive meetings and discussions with key stakeholders in the field of entrepreneurship, and because of this success, we will continue to build on the connections we’ve made and actively work towards creating long-lasting and collaborative relationships with our diaspora community. We hope that you continue to support our vision and join us on our journey to foster innovation and leadership in Palestine.