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The MIT Enterprise Forum is back and better than ever! Not sure if you’ll attend? Then stick around to know why you should.

Okay so now let’s rewind a year back when the MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) celebrated its 10th year of entrepreneurial success in Bahrain. It’s not something new to witness such events because we all know that Bahrain is developing its startup ecosystem. For instance, we have StartUp Bahrain, an initiative powered by the community that connects entrepreneurs, corporates, investors, incubators, educational institutions, and the Bahrain Government to enrich the startup ecosystem in the island.

This year the 11th edition of the MITEF Arab Startup competition will be held in Muscat, Oman.

Oh and guess what! we also claim the bragging rights for having two Bahraini-based startups finalists in this year’s competition:

1) Glare – In the ideas track we have Glare, a platform that incorporates a software technology that helps people overcome their fear of public-speaking via a VR simulator.

2)Dual Networks SA – The second Bahraini-based startup under the Startups track category is Dual Networks SA, which provides competitive solutions catering the industry sector, like construction and governments worldwide.

The Arab Startup is a yearly competition managed by the MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab, crowns 3 entrepreneurs in different tracks: Ideas Track, Startups Track, and Social Entrepreneurship Track. The winners will are awarded prizes worth more than $160,000 and not only that! They will benefit from the must-haves of every business like – You guessed it! Exposure to amazing networking opportunities, knowledge exchanging, top-tier training, coaching and mentoring.

The partners of this year’s competition are Community Jameel, Riyada, Omantel, Oman Technology Fund and Zain Group opted in as the strategic partners, and last but not least, we have the StartUp Bahrain on board as the community partner.

So why should you attend?

Here are the TOP 4 reasons why we think you should attend the MITEF Conference:

  1. Get Ready to be EXPOSED through Networking Opportunities – Having global well-known investors, business people, public figures and media personnel – what better way to get the word of your business out there?, pitch your idea, exchange your business cards with the influencers and who knows, you might walk out of the conference securing a potential investor!
  2. Be Inspired with the Region’s Innovative Startups – Get to know what it takes to build up and accelerate your startup, exchange ideas and most importantly, see who’s going to plunder the money bags and bring home the title of this year’s competition.
  3. Get face-to-face with this Year’s Speakers and International Business People – With Hala Fadel chair founder of the MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab, Rocio Fonseca executive director of Startup Chile, Amir Farha co-founder of BECO Capital, Tarek Fahim managing partner at Endure Capital, Christopher Rogers partner at Lumia Capital, Sharif El-Badawi Partner at 500 Startups, Eamonn Carey managing director of TechStars and Ahmed El Alfi Founder and Chairman of Sawari Ventures – Talk About being starstruck!
  4. Feed into your entrepreneurial know-how through Panel Discussions – with the speakers talking about – “Building Emerging Ecosystems” and the “What Silicon Valley Investors Want To See In MENA”- now that is something you do not want to miss!

If you didn’t know already, last year, three Bahraini teams were competing in each of the competition’s three tracks. Bahrain’s Startup track candidate was Akalati, an app created by Abdulla Al Radhi which offers accessible catering restaurants for parties or events. Hala Sulaiman’s, Amira Mohammed’s, and Mohammed Ebrahim’s fresh concept of an Arabic-language audiobook store, Al Rawi, in the Social Entrepreneurship track. Competing in the Ideas track was Apollo Green, founded by Hussain Aljaafari, Ali Khalil Suhrab, Adel Shafeeq and Fadi Rizk, which introduced a fully automated, self-sustaining greenhouse concept.

Having Bahraini-based startups competing regionally ensures that the startups’ community in Bahrain is growing and developing year by year.

What are you waiting for? Get your mobiles and head over and REGISTER now here! It’s totally FREE. Learn more about the MITEF competition here.

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