10 digital education startups in the MENA region
SOURCE: Business Chief
Business Chief takes a closer look at Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa's), shortlist of 10 digital education startups in the MENA region.
“At Sheraa, entrepreneurs are at the heart of everything we do. Launched in 2016, Sheraa’s mandate is to curate the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Sharjah, and support founders as they build high-impact businesses that serve as engines for socio-economic development,” comments Najla Al Midfa, CEO, Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa).
“Since inception, we are proud to have graduated over 100 startups that have raised over $50M in investment and provided over 600 jobs. We also host the annual Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival (SEF), which aims to inspire the next generation of global changemakers and annually attracts an audience of over 3,000 attendees from around the world.”
Reflecting on the current startup landscape within the MENA region Al Midfa explains that “although precise statistics on venture creation do not exist, the dynamism of the MENA’s growing digital economy can really be felt. There are more startups receiving funding — for example, Magnitt reported $704 million in total funding across 564 investments in 2019.”
“The significant increase in startup events, incubators, and accelerators, as well as the education sector incorporating entrepreneurship courses in schools and universities reflects a maturing entrepreneurship ecosystem. With Sheraa’s hubs located in University City, we also see education institutions playing a much stronger role in cultivating entrepreneurial skills than in the past, with the inclusion of entrepreneurship in educational curricula producing a generation of talented young founders, keen to take the future into their own hands to generate positive change,” he adds.
With this in mind we take a look at 10 of Sheraa’s digital startups within digital education to watch out for in the next few years.
Arabic Digital Reform Institute (ADRI)
Arabic Digital Reform Institute (ADRI) is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) system for open access research. The system searches for research in english and translates them into Arabic, as well as correcting literal and formatting issues.
Founded: 2019
Based: Bahrain
Founders: Muna Abusulayman, Ali Mazraeh, Dave Moskovitz, Laurence Ingle, Michael
Abjjad is one of the first Arabic social networks for readers, authors and bloggers in the Middle East. The site enables readers to create a virtual library, as well as rate, review and enrich author pages with related information.
Founded: 2012
Based: Jordan
Founders: Eman Hylooz, Tamim Al Manaseer
Almentor.net is an e-learning and professional development platform. The network offers video courses and talks in Arabic and English for people in the MIddle East and Africa.
Founded: 2018
Based: United Arab Emirates
Founders: Abdelrahman Fahmy, Hesham Heikal, Husni Khuffash, Ibrahim Kamel, Ihab Fikry
Kotobna, is a self-publishing platform, providing the ability to publish, promote, sell and access readers directly without a medium.
Founded: 2014
Based: Egypt
Founders: Mohammad Gamal
Kitab Sawti is one of the largest Arabic audiobooks library in the world. Kitab Sawti provides audiobooks and podcasts to users via a mobile app.
Founded: 2016
Based: United Arab Emirates
Founders: Sebastian Bond
Arabee is an interactive, comprehensive and progressive multi format Arabic language program. The program was designed to to Arabic to children in a fun and interactive way.
Founded: 2017
Based: United Arab Emirates
Founders: Saeed Basweidan, Ferakh Lakhany
BoBu
Bobu provides a unified and simplified software solution for book publishers to design mobile apps and games for children. It allows book publishers to convert books into interactive e-books.
Founded: 2019
Based: Turkey
Founders: Izzet Bogazliyanlioglu, Muhammet Ozmen
Englease
Englease strives to positively impact the lives of millions by providing them with the most affordable and relevant English learning tools.
Features of the platform include: live, online, unlimited and certified english classes, 16 hours a day, 6 days a week by bilingual teachers (Arabic and English).
Founded: 2019
Based: United Arab Emirates
Founders: Omar Chihane
Little Thinking Minds is a leader in education technology. The company creates advanced Arabic language digital solutions and platforms to improve the learning outcomes for school children in the MENA region and beyond.
Founded: 2005
Based: United Arab Emirates
Founders: Lamia Tabbaa, Rama Kayyali
We Love Reading
We Love Reading is an international organisation that aims to foster a love for reading among children, by encouraging adults to read aloud to children to empower them with the mindset of ‘I can’.
Founded: 2010
Based: Jordan
Founders: Dr. Rana Dajani
Do you want more in-depth research on the MENA VC & startup ecosystem? Purchase our 2019 MENA Venture Investment Report HERE
Source: middleeast.businesschief.com