“Bahraini Entrepreneurship” signs a memorandum with the Hult Award to launch the Global Entrepreneurship Competition in Bahrain

The Bahrain Businessmen Association signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Hult Prize with the aim of organizing and launching the Global Entrepreneurship Competition for university students in the Kingdom of Bahrain in a step that reflects the Association’s commitment to supporting innovation and social entrepreneurship, and enabling young entrepreneurs to develop sustainable solutions to global challenges, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

This agreement represents the beginning of a strategic partnership between the two sides, under which the Bahraini Businessmen Association will organize the local version of the competition in coordination with the award’s regional office in the Middle East and North Africa, and work with Bahraini universities to attract students and encourage them to establish innovative pioneering projects with an economic and social impact.

The Hult Prize is one of the most prominent international university competitions in the field of social entrepreneurship and is equivalent to the Nobel Prize for university students. The competition annually witnesses the participation of more than two thousand universities from more than 130 countries around the world, where students compete to innovate entrepreneurial projects capable of creating a positive, sustainable impact, while the winning team globally receives a financial prize of one million US dollars to transform their project into a start-up company.

Under the memorandum of cooperation, the two parties will work to implement an integrated program that includes organizing introductory campaigns within universities, training workshops, and guidance and guidance programs provided by a group of experts and entrepreneurs, with the aim of qualifying student teams to compete locally and globally, and enhancing their capabilities in designing commercial projects, preparing business models, and presenting to arbitration committees and investors.

Mr. Ahmed Bin Hindi, President of the Bahraini Businessmen Association, stressed that this partnership is consistent with the association’s vision of supporting Bahraini youth and enhancing their role in building a national economy based on innovation and entrepreneurship.

Bin Hindi added that we are happy to sign the memorandum of cooperation with the Hult Award because it represents a leading international platform that gives university students real opportunities to transform their ideas into commercial projects with a global impact, as the association believes that investing in youth is an investment in the future of Bahrain, stressing that the association will work with universities and the public and private sectors to provide the appropriate environment that enables students to be creative and innovative, and to represent the Kingdom in the best way in this international competition.

Bin Hindi indicated that the association views this initiative as one of the national initiatives aimed at building a new generation of entrepreneurs capable of finding innovative solutions to economic and social challenges, contributing to achieving sustainable development and enhancing Bahrain’s competitiveness regionally and globally.

For her part, Ms. Yana Dabbaghia, Regional Director of the Hult Award for the Middle East and North Africa, expressed her pride in the partnership with the Bahraini Businessmen Association, stressing that Bahrain has a promising environment for innovation and entrepreneurship.

Dabbaghia added that Bahraini students possess the skills and creativity necessary to develop entrepreneurial solutions that will have a positive impact at the local and global levels, as this partnership will provide an integrated platform for students to benefit from the award’s global network, which includes mentors, investors and experts in entrepreneurship.

She stressed that the Middle East and North Africa region is witnessing rapid growth in the entrepreneurship sector, and that the involvement of Bahraini universities in this global system will open new horizons for Bahraini youth, enabling them to build emerging companies with a sustainable impact.

It is scheduled to begin during the coming period introductory tours in various Bahraini universities to announce the opening of participation, followed by the implementation of training and qualification programs for student teams, leading to the holding of local finals through which the winning team will qualify to represent the Kingdom of Bahrain in the international stages of the competition.