Tech in Africa
The Techstars Riyadh Accelerator kicked off in early November in Saudi Arabia. 12 companies drawn from Saudi Arabia and the wider MENA region are participating. The companies represent innovation across the 6 sectors of EdTech, logistics, and fintech, and more. Shortlisted firms receive US$120,000 in addition to hands-on mentorship and access to the Techstars network.
The program is held in a partnership between MCIT and Raed Ventures that will grow the startup ecosystem and drive innovation across the region. MCIT is now a leader in driving innovation and entrepreneurship in the technology sector – guided by a vision 2030. Raed Ventures runs on a mission to invest in innovative regional founding groups where their regional expertise helps them navigate these markets.
The three Egypt startups that took part are cloud-based PoS retail management platform Tegarti, appointment booking for beauty services Glamera, and organizational software for planning, launching, managing, and assessing online innovation and talent acquisition programmes Untap.
Other MENA startups participating in the 13-week programme are tutoring network marketplace app AlGooru, digitized spare parts trade platform Autobia, online pharmacy shopping startup Dawafast, live and interactive online platform for kids Gaga, alternative saving platform Hakbah, foodtech Jalebi, Meat-O-Door that enables butcheries to connect with meat lovers, Onex Medical, and Torod. The Demo day on 17th February 2022 will mark a culmination of the program.
