New competition for Islamic digital economy start-ups

The ‘Innovation 4 Impact’ competition will be hosted by Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA) and the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre (DIEDC), in collaboration with Thomson Reuters.

Also working with the American Muslim Consumer Consortium, it seeks to support start-ups and businesses in the Islamic digital economy and serve as an incubator for SMEs across the world.

Due to take place at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, the competition is open for applications from any company or entrepreneur with an idea or business venture in the following sectors: E-commerce, mobile computing, cloud computing, big data, hyper-converged platforms, and new media and social media.

The applicants will be judged on different aspects including innovation, economic and social impact as well as the scalability across markets and regions.

The jury and the audience will vote to decide on the winner on 6 October, the concluding day of GIES 2015.

Commenting on this competition, Dr Mohammed Alzarooni, vice chairman and CEO of DSOA, said: “The first ‘Innovation 4 Impact’ Competition has been developed to empower Islamic businesses in the digital and Arabic content field in line with the leadership’s vision to transform Dubai into the ‘Capital of Islamic Economy’.

“The competition is a platform for start-ups and businesses to gain support and entrepreneurial advice to further develop their value propositions that will allow them to play a major role in the growth of the digital Islamic economy sector in the MENA region.”

The GIES 2015 Summit is expected to draw more than 2,000 policymakers and business leaders who will discuss business and investment opportunities in Islamic finance and insurance, the completion of halal food value chain from manufacturing to logistics, as well as tourism and SMEs.

For further information on the Innovation 4 Impact Competition and details on participation, visit www.innovation4impact.net