Halcyon collaborates with US Department of State, Amazon Web Services to deliver programme for MENA region impact business founders

AMMAN — On June 24, Washington, DC-based nonprofit Halcyon announced the participants in its 2022 MENA Halcyon/AWS Intensive, a new programme presented in partnership with the US Department of State and in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and local partner TTi Jordan.

The cohort includes 27 startup founders from eight countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) representing 18 of the region’s most promising impact-driven businesses, according to a US embassy statement.

These new Halcyon Fellows are bringing innovative solutions to market for a wide range of issues, from clean water and affordable medical devices to sustainable food systems and access to education for disabled students, the statement said.

They join Halcyon’s network of over 300 fellows from around the world solving 21^st century challenges through impact-driven business, read the statement. From June 24-30, a residency for these fellows in Amman will offer condensed programming culminating in a showcase event.

“Halcyon Fellows across the globe are solving 21^st century challenges through business, and these 18 ventures are powerful additions to that network,” said Kate Goodall, Halcyon’s co-founder and CEO, and co-manager of the Halcyon Fund.

“The MENA region is building back from the COVID-19 pandemic with ingenuity, innovation and impact, and together with our partners and collaborators at the US State Department and AWS, we are proud to be supporting that work,” Goodall said.

Halcyon’s intensive programming is designed to bring skill-building sessions, mentorship, coaching, and other resources to specific groups of founders — in this case impact founders from the MENA region. Because all these ventures are tech or tech-enabled startups, fellows in this particular programme benefit from cloud credits and access to technical assistance from Solutions Architects provided by AWS, the statement said.

Highlights of the residency period in Amman include sessions from Cairo Angels on investment readiness, a reception hosted by US embassy Amman, and fireside chat with Sari Hweitat, CEO of Xina AI.

A culminating showcase event on June 29 will include pitches from all 18 ventures, as well as keynote remarks from Ahmad Hanandeh, Minister of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, and Special Representative Dorothy McAuliffe, US Department of State Special Representative for Global Partnerships.

McAuliffe said her Office of Global Partnerships at the US State Department is “proud to support the Halcyon MENA Residency programme to address the secondary economic impacts of the pandemic and help us build back better in communities across the globe”.

Among the 18 startup ventures participating in the 2022 MENA Halcyon/AWS Intensive are:

—  Tunisia-based Sghartoon, a teletherapy tool using games and data as a tool for parents to detect signs of learning differences in their children. Sghartoon is the first and only provider of Arabic-language digital tools for therapists.

—  Jordan-based SOLVillion, developing a decentralised wastewater treatment system using safe, low cost, green and high-quality standards.

—  Lebanon-based Shabab Lab, a social innovation e-learning platform with a vision to become the Coursera for Arab youth, bridging the gap between the educational system and the needs of the 21^st century.

—  Jordan-based Third Eye Solution, an end-to-end solution collecting factory data and using built-in analytics to improve efficiency and profitability using existing machinery.

Details for the other 14 participating ventures and biographies for all 27 founders are available on Halcyon’s website.