(JORDAN)
Arab Startups were making the headlines at last week’s World Economic Forum (WEF) on the Middle East and North Africa.
The gathering, which took place at the Dead Sea, Jordan, invited 100 startups from across the region to attend and network with investors and each other.
“For us, continual innovation is part of the rhythm of life. We grew up embracing new technologies, apps, and processes that give us new ways to connect, and learn, and work. Constant change is our ‘status quo’,” remarked H.R.H. Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, in his opening speech.
The startups are working in areas like blockchain, satellite technology and artificial intelligence to develop products designed to revolutionise services locally and internationally.
Prince Abdullah II said, like youth everywhere, young people in the Middle East wanted “a fair chance, a chance to be heard, a chance to make a difference.” He highlighted the fact that young people in the region were heavy users of technology but pointed out that the impact went far beyond consumerism, with “young men and women” in this part of the world “spearheading innovation and change”.
“They’ve produced new-era products and services, new Arabic-language web content, new ideas that can serve our region and our world,” he said.
