In an effort to encourage innovation among young people and support new business ideas, Qatar University (QU) has launched the eighth edition of its ‘Innovation & Entrepreneurship’ contest for the 2020-2021 academic year.

In a virtual ceremony organised by QU’s College of Business and Economics and College of Engineering, the contest opened its application process for students.

With Qatar’s economy facing challenges ranging from geopolitical tensions to the global covid19 pandemic,  the university announced that this year’s competition will focus on creating business ideas and innovation that can help the country in building a knowledge-based economy.

“The contest is designed to spread awareness about the importance of entrepreneurial activities, trigger the entrepreneurial skills of QU students and engage them on how to develop sound business plans. When they graduate, our students will enter a highly competitive business environment in Qatar,” said CENG Dean Dr. Khalid Kamal Naji.

Naji added that QU is committed to teaching students the skills and competencies needed for them to become the next leaders in the world of business.

“CENG is committed to providing its students with a forum to develop their creative and innovative business ideas which will add value to their education,” he added. 

All participating teams will have access to training materials provided by experts, educating them on how to prepare and present effective business models and how to pitch them to professionals. 

After the teams prepare their ideas, they will have to present them to a panel of judges for a chance to win. Dr Adam Fadlallah, CBE Dean, said that the ideas pitched have to be unique in nature and have the potential to ultimately contribute to the country’s development and progress. 

“The business ideas should be feasible, realistic, and preferably serve to meet the needs of the labor market and the private sector in Qatar. We look forward to seeing the innovative projects that will emerge,” said Dr Fadlallah.

Winning teams will get monetary prizes, in addition to the chance to have their proposals developed further in the Center of Entrepreneurship’s Incubator. 

Earlier this month, QU also developed a new robot that delivers food, medicine and disinfects the air and surfaces, in an effort to help fight the spread of COVID-19.

Read more: Meet QU’s corona-fighting robot

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