The American Cultural Center, in partnership with the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center at the American University in Cairo, celebrated the closing of the Global Entrepreneurship Week at the American University in Cairo, after a successful week of workshops and panel discussions presented to thousands of participants online and in person in Cairo, Alexandria, and Mansoura on the U.S. and Egyptian entrepreneurial ecosystems, youth empowerment, investment readiness, and women entrepreneurship opportunities, from November 13 to 19.
During the closing ceremony, 16 teams will participate in a “hackathon” competition to pitch their ideas for sustainable, innovative business solutions to environmental and social challenges. The first winner team, Qatfa, won the Environmental Innovation Award for its innovative solutions in the field of food preservation and waste reduction to create natural coatings for fruits and vegetables for a more sustainable future.
As for the community innovation awards, both “Halet Wasl” - a community cooking initiative that aims to help people communicate through cooking, and “My Child” - an initiative that seeks to improve the relationship between parents and children, and reduce the intellectual gap, won. Between the two generations.
In his closing speech, Minister Counselor for Public Affairs Rubin Harutunian said: “Our U.S. commitment to Egypt’s next generation of changemakers runs very deep. Since 1978, the U.S. government has contributed over $30 billion dollars to Egypt’s development, which is one of the most substantial assistance commitments to any country in the world.”
He also talked about the opportunities available to Egyptian entrepreneurs at the annual SelectUSA conference in Washington, saying: “once Egyptian entrepreneurs have established their businesses in the Egyptian market, we can help those who want to expand by investing in the United States. By having a presence in the U.S. entrepreneurial ecosystem, young and innovative Egyptian companies can gain exposure to the largest source of venture capital in the world. The annual SelectUSA conference in Washington, D.C, to be held next June, is designed to help prospective tech investors from around the world pursue this strategy.”
Harutunian also addressed the current events happening in Gaza, saying “it is humbling to be here during a time when Palestinian civilians are suffering in Gaza. We are committed to working with leaders in Egypt and throughout the region to protect innocent civilians and to increase the continuous flow of urgently needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza. We are grateful to Egypt for its leadership role during this crisis.”
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