Two Bahrainis to take part in the international Pitch@Palace competition to be held in the UK

A delegation of Bahraini entrepreneurs has concluded their participation in the boot camp organized as part of Pitch@Palace Global, which is taking place from the period 10th to 13th December at St. James' Palace in London, UK. Their participation comes after winning the local and GCC qualifying rounds which took place in Bahrain in April and Abu Dhabi in October.

Bahrain is participating in this international competition for the first time this year. The Kingdom had hosted the inaugural pitch@palace Bahrain earlier this year under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, and in partnership with the Labour Fund “Tamkeen”. This was shortly followed by the GCC competition , the latter of which saw two Bahraini businesses , ‘One GCC’ and ‘AlRawi’ advanced to the final international rounds.

The Pitch@Palace is one of the world's leading initiatives that celebrate the entrepreneurship sector. Launched by His Royal Highness Prince Andrew, Duke of York, to encourage start-ups and provide entrepreneurs with a platform to develop their budding enterprises, all within an integrated interactive program that enables participants to benefit from an extensive network of expertise and support from local and international specialists.

Tamkeen's Chief Executive Dr. Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi expressed his appreciation for the high standard of excellence exhibited by the participating Bahraini delegation in this international event, noting that this achievement also qualified Bahrain to host the GCC version of the competition in 2019.

“The Kingdom of Bahrain has been a pioneering force in entrepreneurship at the international level and boasts a strong and distinctive experience in supporting the start-up business ecosystem and fostering economic development,” Dr. Janahi stated.

He went on to add that Tamkeen's participation in bolstering the national economy in line with Bahrain's collective national efforts to achieve the sustainable economic development goals as well as Bahrain Economic Vision 2030 underscores the importance of investing in supporting Bahraini entrepreneurs and boosting their contribution to the national economy.

“Our representative entrepreneurs’ participation in this international competition is an opportunity to showcase Bahraini innovation to the international entrepreneurship community and expand the Kingdom’s involvement within the global economic system.

The two-day boot camp included a series of training workshops and specialised sessions which introduce entrepreneurs from all over the world to the development opportunities and challenges of the latest developments and frameworks of the global economy.

Speaking at one of the boot camp’s workshops, Dr. Nasser Ali Qaedi, Tamkeen’s Chief Investment and Marketing Officer highlighted the investment and growth opportunities the Kingdom of Bahrain has to offer international markets, as well as the support mechanisms it has in place as part of its strategic objectives to boost the entrepreneurship sector’s growth.

Dr. Qaedi also commented on the importance of the Bahraini entrepreneurs’ participation in the event, as it affords them a great opportunity to learn about potential areas of development and expansion into international markets and acquire knowledge from other international experiences related to promoting business growth.