Beirut, Monday, 3 October 2016– As part of its commitment to entrepreneurship and innovation, INJAZ Lebanon, a non-profit organization, affiliate of Junior Achievement (JA) Worldwide and member of INJAZ Al-Arab, announced the winners of its national Young Entrepreneurs Competition 2016. The competition and the Awards Ceremony were held at the Lebanese American University (LAU), on October 1st under the patronage of Banque Du Liban, and with the support of ABC, event Gold sponsor, and the United Nations Information Centre in Beirut (UNIC Beirut) and Toastmasters as event partners. The Awards’ Ceremony was hosted by Mr. Andre Abi Awad, Founder of Entreprenergy.
The “Best Company“ award was delivered by Dr. Saad Andary, Vice Governor, Banque du Liban and member of the competition’s judging panel to one school team and one university team: “Banque Du Liban takes pride in supporting Lebanon’s future generation of entrepreneurs. This competition is a key instrument for encouraging Lebanon’s youth to become innovative business leaders, and to play an essential role in strengthening our economy and positioning Lebanon on the global economic map.”
Healthlet, Lady of Balamand High School, winner of the school track, created a wristband with a device containing NFC technology to allow paramedics and other health professionals get access to medical information quickly and efficiently.
Riwayat, Lebanese University- Faculty of arts, winner of university track, created comic books that stand out for their originality and diversity of styles to support a social cause. The company’s mission is to help NGOs and selected CSR programs from the private sector to raise social awareness targeting children and youth.
Other awards included the “Best Marketing Plan” presented by ABC that went to Reminder Pack Tech (School Track) and Riwayat (University track), and the “Best Social Impact” award, presented by UNIC Beirut, that went to Revol-B (School track) and Riwayat (University track). Other two awards across the competition’s school and university tracks included the “Best Team Spirit” award that went to Riwayat and the “People’s Choice” award, voted by the competition followers on INJAZ Lebanon’s social media platforms, that went to Reminder Pack Tech.
The competition was judged by Dr. Saad Andary, Vice Governor Banque du Liban; Ms. Margo Helou, Director of UNIC Beirut; Ms. Dalida Nahas, Marketing Director of ABC; and Mr. Michel Fattal, Senior Vice President of Fattal Group and Chairman of INJAZ Lebanon. The teams’ business performance was evaluated across four stages that included the submission of a report, a business pitch, the set-up of a trade fair stand and a questions and answers session. Students companies were assessed on their ability to demonstrate sound business insight, innovation, financial knowledge, marketing strategy and teamwork.
This event is the culmination of INJAZ Lebanon’s Company Program, a four-month training program sponsored this year by The Asfari Foundation and designed to equip youth with entrepreneurial skills, providing them with the unique opportunity of establishing and running a real business with the support of professional mentors. This year’s mentors volunteered from B1 Group, Berytech, Gezairi, NADAL, SEED, University of Balamand, and UpSkilled Grad.
Participating schools from Beirut, Mount Lebanon and North Lebanon included Al Azm school, Lady of Balamand High School, Laure Moghaizel Public High School for Girls and Tripoli Secondary Public School for Girls. Participating universities included Manar University and Lebanese University, Fine Arts Faculty.
Both winning teams will represent Lebanon and compete against another 13 Arab countries at the INJAZ Al-Arab Regional Young Entrepreneurs Competition that will be held in Bahrain in November 2016.
INJAZ Lebanon is a partnership between the business community and educators that aims to equip youth with the skills and mindset to become the future entrepreneurs and business leaders stimulating their communities. Since its inception in 2001, over 60,000 youth, aged between 10 and 24, have participated in INJAZ Lebanon programs with the support of 2,500 professionals from various local and international corporations based in Lebanon.
Notes to Editors:
Participating schools include:
Al Azm School – project Reminder Pack Tech
Lady of Balamand High School – project Healthlet
Laure Moghaizel Public High School for Girls – project Revol-B
Shakib Arslan Public High School – project Water Drop
Tripoli Secondary Public School for Girls – project The Balcony Desk
Participating universities include:
Manar University – project Tryshop
Lebanese University, Fine Arts faculty – project Riwayat
For further information contact:
Nicole Kazan
Marketing Communications Specialist, INJAZ Lebanon
[email protected]
+961 1 49 37 40
About INJAZ Lebanon
INJAZ Lebanon, a non-profit organization, is a member of INJAZ Al-Arab (www.injazalarab.org) and an affiliate of Junior Achievement (JA) Worldwide (www.jaworldwide.org), the world’s largest and fastest growing youth business organization dedicated to educating students about work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through hands-on training programs.
INJAZ Lebanon is a partnership between the business community and educators all working together to equip youth with the skills and mindset they need to become the entrepreneurs and business leaders stimulating their communities. Since its inception in 2001, over 60,000 youth aged 10 to 24 years old have participated in INJAZ Lebanon programs thanks to the support of 2,500 professionals from local and international corporations in Lebanon. For more information, please visit (www.injaz-lebanon.org).