Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Deputizing for Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan, President of the El Hassan Science City and the Royal Scientific Society, has honored the winners of the fourth round of Queen Rania National Entrepreneurship Competition (QRNEC).
Founded by the Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship in 2004, with the full support of El-Hassan Science City & El-Hassan Business Park, the competition aims to fuel the spirit of Entrepreneurship, Creativity and Innovation across society, and to help Jordanians to turn their entrepreneurial ideas into successful companies that supply innovative products and services to regional and global markets.
HRH Princess Sumaya praised all of the participating projects for their pioneering approach to technology and business, and the creative spirit that they embody. The Princess added that these innovations reflect the talent and ‘can-do’ attitude of Jordan’s entrepreneurs and young people:
"We congratulate the winners and the organizers of this competition and, indeed, all participants, and we congratulate Jordan for having such great energy and creativity – This has always been a source of pride for all Jordanians," said Princess Sumaya.
"I am confident that the outputs of this competition will add more life into Jordan’s Innovation Ecosystem by providing additional dealflow, investment and incubation opportunities,” added HRH.
For his part, Farhan Kalaldeh, the Executive Director of QRCE, said: "These projects demonstrate the potential of Jordanian youth and entrepreneurs, as well as the individual skills and capabilities they possess, as it emphasizes the need to help them, through creating the right environment to unleash and develop these ideas to serve their communities and become a source of sustainable income to our beloved country.”
In addition to the competition’s main objectives, Kalaldeh pointed out that the focus of this year’s competition was to attract investors and raise their awareness of the investment opportunities offered by emerging technology startups and the commercial potential of transforming ideas into products and services aimed at regional and global markets. Moreover, the focus was directed at strategic sectors of the Kingdom’s economy, such as ICT, Clean Technology and Life Sciences.
"Additionally, the competition serves as a tool to nurture the participants’ entrepreneurial skills, assisting them to develop and refine their business plans. Also, it helps to foster the spirit of initiative and innovation among university graduates from technical disciplines and business specialties, encouraging them to move their projects from concept to implementation." He added.
QRNEC had 400 participants in its fourth round, championing more than 120 projects. The competition process involved comprehensive training in the areas of strategic planning, business plan development, project management and other topics related to starting and growing high impact technology companies.
Thirty teams were nominated for the final phase of the award in three categories: Startups; Projects under Development (Pre-Startup); and Universities. Project sectors were Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Clean Technology and Life Sciences. From these, 19 winning projects were selected:
In the Startups Category, the following projects were selected:
First place: Mixed Dimensions (MXD) – a company that develops tools for gaming companies and online Interactive 3D applications developers.
Second place: Naratech Labs – a company that assists pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, chemicals, food and beverages manufacturers to develop new products.
Third place: TAQETNA – a company that develops smart renewable energy products and services.
In the Projects Under Development/ Pre-Startup Category, the following projects were selected:
First place: Nitrate Production System – Developed a business plan for a company to design and manufacture an innovative new (patent pending) device for producing Nitrogen-based fertilizer in continuous and sustained quantities without the high cost of production associated with petrochemical-based fertilizers.
Second place: Taltol - Developed a business plan for an online marketplace where users can buy and sell digital content & products.
Third place: EduServ – Developed a business plan to provide online tools to establish better links between schools and parents.
In the Universities Category, the following projects were selected:
First place: Mawdoo3.com from Hashemite University – Developed a business plan for the first Arabic website to offer high quality Arabic articles with automated Arabic keyword analysis service.
Second place: Jordan Unmanned Systems’ from German Jordanian University – Developed a business plan to produce electrically powered UASs (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) for a variety of applications.
Third place: Yadawi from Yarmouk University – Developed a business plan for an online store selling handmade items on regional and global levels.
It is worth mentioning that QRNEC awards amount to $50,000, awarded to projects in the fields of ICT, Agricultural Technology, Renewable Energy, Water, Life Sciences, and Advanced Technologies.
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