PepsiCo and the Arab Youth Center have opened applications for young Arab innovators to apply for the Arab Youth Hackathon, a regional entrepreneurship program aimed at creating smarter solutions to climate-related issues in agriculture, circular economy, water security, and renewable energy and efficiency.
According to recent research, 65% of Gen Z members in MENA are concerned about the world, but a higher proportion – 66% are hopeful about the change they can deliver. 50% are also actively striving to make a change through social, political, or environmental means.
The hackathon will run in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon and is seeking applicants, including university students and early-stage entrepreneurs who either are looking to ideate or have a preliminary existing idea at the testing phase, which will evolve during the hackathons. Candidates must apply in teams of 2 to 3 participants and are to be between 18 to 35 years of age. Each team must have at least one member who is older than 21 years.
Once the shortlist of teams has been selected, PepsiCo, PepsiCo Foundation, Plug and Play, and AYC will host a three-day local hackathon, providing mentorship and curated workshops to transfer knowledge to the participants. In Egypt, the hackathon will be held from the 22nd to the 24th of September in Cairo.
The proposed solutions will be assessed and selected based on their innovation and must be financially feasible and scalable. A panel of experts will evaluate the entries based on their sustainability alignment, ability to reduce emissions, and the magnitude of impact on areas under the four pillars of the competition (Water, Agriculture, Climate, Circular economy) such as climate change, energy, circular economy, deforestation, green transformation, soil fertility, waste management, water scarcity, and marine environment wellbeing and others.
The final of the competition, featuring 15 of the most promising solutions from the five countries, will take place in December in Dubai. The three best innovators will receive an equity-free seed fund from the PepsiCo Foundation to launch their businesses, worth $30,000 for the winner, $20,000 for the runner-up, and $10,000 for the second runner-up. In addition, they will attend a five-month incubation program that will help them develop and scale their groundbreaking ideas and ensure long-term success.
The Arab Youth Hackathon is open for applications until September 9th in Egypt. Interested participants can find out more and submit their entries at arabyouthhackathon.com
