- Endeavor Lebanon and Beirut Digital District driving economic prosperity in Lebanon
- Fadlo Khuri, President of AUB, gives keynote address
Endeavor Lebanon, an impact organization focused on supporting high-impact entrepreneurs marked its success and contributions to economic prosperity over the past five years in Lebanon, in an Annual Gala Dinner in Beirut, to a growing crowd of mentors, professionals, supporters and entrepreneurs. The event was supported by Beirut Digital District (BDD), an ongoing champion of Endeavor Lebanon’s vision and mission and sponsored by B&Y Venture Partners, Impact Fund by Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP) and A.N.Boukather. Endeavor Lebanon has continued to grow, with its carefully selected high-impact entrepreneurs employing 1,463 people in total and generating $146.6M in revenues in 2015.
“Our journey has been enticing since we set up operations in Lebanon in 2011, and consequently watched the impact of our efforts ripple throughout the country and across its borders,” said Tarek Sadi, Managing Director, Endeavor Lebanon. “Today, we have hand-picked 30 high-impact entrepreneurs that we mentor, support and grant access to a global network, to accelerate economic growth and prosperity in Lebanon.”
Sadi went on to outline the numerous challenges that local entrepreneurs face in emerging markets, such as the lack of existent role models and mentors, great exposure to risk and limited access to smart capital, to name a few, and how Endeavor seeks to overcome them by providing high-impact entrepreneurs with the skills, tools, access to financing and mentorship.
“Beirut Digital District aims to create a hub for the digital and creative industries in Lebanon by developing communities that bond, interact, and flourish. Endeavor Lebanon has always worked coherently with our goal, by bridging the gap between local best-in-class SMEs and market leaders allowing them to learn from each other’s experiences and ideas,” said Mouhamad Rabah, General Manager of ZRE. “We are proud that BDD is a partner of an organization which supports leading entrepreneurs and we look forward to seeing homegrown talent cross international borders,” he added.
Rabah also outlined BDD’s ongoing recognition of the skilled, multi-talented and competitive workforce in Lebanon, a country which is a knowledge based economy acting as a hub for startups, incubators, accelerators, and venture capitals.
Endeavor Lebanon carefully selects high-impact entrepreneurs with a successful track record that are likely to make a difference in society. Globally the organization brings together thousands of leading business leaders, experts and decision makers – who help Endeavor Entrepreneurs grow passed their challenges, monitor long-term growth and create lasting value. By selecting, accelerating and cultivating high-impact entrepreneurs Endeavor aims to promote a system of merit-based wealth-creation, create thousands of high-quality jobs, inspire the next generation to pursue their dreams and create innovation ecosystems around the world.
Endeavor Lebanon is part of the global Endeavor network, founded in 1997. Endeavor is headquartered in New York City, with offices across Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, South East Asia and Japan. Lebanon was Endeavor’s 11th country to join and Endeavor Lebanon was launched in January 2011. In total, Endeavor now supports 1,336 entrepreneurs leading 839 companies in 25 growth markets around the world.
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