INJAZ Bahrain successfully concluded its 9 th annual National Company Competition at the Crown Plaza Hotel. The event witnessed 20 student entrepreneur teams from around Bahrain compete to obtain the coveted University Company of the Year and School Company of the Year titles in addition to several other awards, with over 13 high schools and three universities participating in this year’s Company Competition.
Machla team from Ibn Khuldoon National School won High School Company of the Year, and Royal Creators team from the Royal University for Women won University Company of the Year.
Step team from Jidhafs Secondary Girls School won the High School Product of the Year, Ghamza team from the University of Bahrain won the University Product of the Year, Special Needs Future team from Al Estiqlal Secondary Girls School won High School Company for Best Social Impact and Yabilha Puzzle team from the University of Bahrain won University Company for Best Social Impact.
The winning teams received their trophies from Her Highness Shaikha Hessa Bint Khalifa Al Khalifa, Executive Director of INJAZ Bahrain, and Dr. Abdulrahman Jawahery, Chairman of INJAZ Bahrain.
Commenting on the conclusion of the event Sheikha Hessa said “INJAZ Bahrain is grateful for the support of all its partners, volunteers, coordinators and students for their contribution in making the 2016-2017 academic year a resounding success. Our Company Competition reflects the skills, creativity and initiative demonstrated by the participating student teams, and how crucial planning, teamwork, problem-solving and communication are to achieving success as they progress professionally as Bahrain’s future business leaders of Bahrain.”
Dr Jawahery praised the initiative saying: “This year we have once again exceeded all expectations, this has been a record-breaking year for INJAZ Bahrain. We firmly believe every student has the right to achieve their full potential, and as mentors and leaders it is our responsibility to ensure Bahrain’s youth and our students are equipped with the knowledge and skills in this crucial time of their development.”
Tamkeen CEO Dr. Ebrahim Janahi commented: “We are delighted to support the various initiatives launched by INJAZ Bahrain, which comes in parallel with Tamkeen’s efforts in developing youth leadership skills and motivating entrepreneurship and innovation spirit within them, as well as providing them with the necessary tools andbasic experience that help them access the labor market and even establish their own businesses. We are proud of the competition’s level of participation, and confident that such a competition has strengthened the students’ interest in entrepreneurship, especially with having 70% of Bahraini youth interested in establishing their own businesses, according to a recent survey by E&Y”.
The finalists showcased their enterprise and business acumen before a panel of independent judges who evaluated each company’s performance against the competition criteria. The winning teams will go on to represent INJAZ Bahrain and Bahrain at the 2017 Young Entrepreneurs Competition to be held in Egypt later this year.