Five finalists pitched their innovations to support Islamic digital economy

‘Innovation 4 Impact’ Competition, a unique platform targeting the growing Islamic digital economy, took centre-stage at the 2016 Global Islamic Economy Summit (GIES 2016) as one of the Summit’s special programs. The Competition began today on 11th October at Madinat Jumeriah in Dubai, United Arab Emirates with more than 2,500 attendees including policymakers, senior government officials, industry leaders, top executives and investors.

The competition is organized by Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA), and the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), in strategic partnership with Thomson Reuters.

Innovation 4 Impact is designed to support Islamic digital entrepreneurs from around the world obtain mentorship, advice, investment and scale their business ventures. Five distinguished finalists from around the world presented a five-minute pitch towards supporting Islamic digital economy, followed by a seven-minute Q&A from a panel of expert judges. The judges and the audience of the Global Islamic Economy Summit have also casted their votes for the winner. The winner, selected through the votes of the jury and the audience, will be announced tomorrow October 12, on the concluding today the Summit.

The five finalists are:

1. Alem Health, represented by Aschkan Abdul Malek from Singapore;

1. Divine Connect, represented by Mohamed Pazhoor from USA;

1. iGrow, represented by Muhaimin Iqbal from Indonesia;

1. Intuition Intelligence Inc., represented Arif Ansari from USA;

1. Kwn Education, represented by Hala AlTurki from UAE

Applications were received from different regions, including Middle East, Asia, Americas, Europe and Africa. One lucky winner will receive a cash prize of US$20,000 and a set of incubational services collectively valued at over US$10,000 - including the opportunity to set up office at the Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre (DTEC), DSOA’s wholly owned technology incubation centre and the largest of its kind in the region.

The incubation services will support the entity in establishing either its primary or secondary presence in Dubai.

• 1 fixed desk and service license in Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre (DTEC) for 1 year;

• Visa or Visa transfer costs for two persons (max) waived (paid by DSOA);

• An opportunity to pitch in front of the Incubation Selection committee with the prospect of attracting funding to mutually accepted terms.

Commenting on the opening ceremony, Bader Buhannad, Executive VP of Strategy and ICT at DSOA, said: “We would like to congratulate all those who made it to the finals. They are the most trendsetting examples of Islamic digital economy entrepreneurs. Their innovative business solutions are the true examples of how we can take Islamic economy to a new level. We look forward to the award ceremony on 12 October and to announcing the winner of Innovation 4 Impact 2016 edition”.

Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, CEO of DIEDC, said: “Congratulations to all the participants that made it to the final round of the Innovation 4 Impact Competition held as part of the Global Islamic Economy Summit 2016. We are proud and excited to see the high-calibre of innovative ideas presented by technology entrepreneurs within the field of Islamic economy. We are confident that the new generation is qualified to continue the development of digital Islamic economy that serves as a pillar of Islamic economy as a whole. The Innovation 4 Impact competition inspires a culture of entrepreneurship that we are working to grow to include all sectors within the Islamic economy.

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Nadim Najjar, Managing Director of Thomson Reuters, Middle East and North Africa, said: “Our collaboration with DSOA and DIEDC on this competition, reinforces Thomson Reuter’s commitment towards Islamic digital entrepreneurship initiatives. Digital economy represents a new economic paradigm that has a real impact on societies and that can also enable economic innovations.  Islamic digital economy has the potential to outpace the digital economy with a large Muslim population that is younger on average than the global population. The five selected finalists presented unique digital propositions to the Islamic economy with only one winner will be announced during the second day of GIES 2016”.

Managed in collaboration with the American Muslim Consumer Consortium, the competition was open to any business ventures which have an economic and social impact on the Islamic digital economy.