Last Wednesday was the final Demo Day of the Yanhad program's 2nd edition — funded by the European Union and the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, and implemented by Expertise France and The Station.
I was honored to join Marwan Jabbar and Safa Fadhil Al-Sultani on the jury to witness eight business ideas presented on stage for the first time. These were developed over four months of intensive training in ideation, business-model development, marketing, and more — part of a program that incubated 200+ participants from cities across the nation.
It's always fascinating to see new faces seeded into the MSME space. Hats off to Ammar Al-khatib and The Station's team for turning their programs into an energetic engine that enables young Iraqis from all over the country. To VLab, EcoMena, Findiqi, FreshPlus, Shathra, Artifex, Dormy, and Vety — best of luck as you sharpen your tools and go live.