Out of 937 submitted proposals from first round of “Challenge 22” programme, which aims at developing innovative solutions for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, 76 submissions have qualified for the second round.
The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) yesterday announced it saying the submissions qualified following an extensive auditing and review process of a total of 937 submitted proposals, from Round 1.
Challenge 22 is a programme launched by the SC to promote a culture of innovation within the Arab world. As part of its ongoing mandate, Challenge 22 aims to attract innovators and entrepreneurs to support and nurture ideas that could potentially serve as innovative solutions for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, as well as contributing to the organisation of other major events and their sustainable impact on Arab societies.
In its second cycle, Challenge 22 reached out to innovators and entrepreneurs in 10 Arab countries to submit their ideas in four categories: Tourism Experience, which received 308 submissions; the Internet of Things, 269 submissions; Sustainability, 217 submissions; and the Health and Safety Challenge, which received 143 submissions, in first round.
Submissions from Qatar came top of the list, with 17 going through to Round 2. This was followed by submissions from Egypt with 11 submissions, Saudi Arabia 10 submissions, Jordan nine, UAE eight, Tunisia six, Kuwait, Morocco, & Oman four submissions each and lastly three from Bahrain. The qualified submissions per category are as follow: 27 from Internet of Things, 23 from Sustainability, 21 from Tourism Experience, and 5 from Health & Safety.
Commenting on the submissions and review process, Communications Director at SC Fatma Al Nuaimi, said: “The organisers and reviewers were keen to choose most viable submissions – on both technical and financial merit – in addition to their potential for contributing to the legacy of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.”
Al Nuaimi added: “Challenge 22 represents the strategic vision of Qatar and its commitment to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which goes beyond basic execution and translates into a catalyst for social, economic and cultural development processes."
Qualifying proposals have time until March 7th to fine-tune their submissions before submitting for the second round of reviews; after which, the finalists will be announced. The 60 successful submissions will also have access to Challenge 22 network of mentors, along with two training workshops, provided by programme partner AstroLabs, to help develop their proposals for Round 2.
Finalists will then be invited to Doha to take part in interactive trainings, mentorship sessions, and workshops, which are designed to help develop their ideas and present to judging panel. The final event will also include “Summit 22” – bringing together regional and international innovators and entrepreneurs to share their experiences.
Challenge 22’s second edition was launched in cooperation with SCDL’s strategic partners: Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF); Wamda; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); Enterprise Forum Pan-Arab; Facebook; Programme Partners; Qatar Science and Technology Park; Qatar Business Incubation Center; Qatar Development Bank; Qatar Airways; AstroLabs and FbStart; along with more than 32 regional partners.
Winning teams or individuals will receive $15,000 in cash prizes and will then be given the opportunity to work with scientists and researchers in the region to begin building their ideas further. Winning ideas will also have the opportunity to receive a grant of up to $100,000 to develop a proof of concept and explore the commercial viability of the product.
Through FbStart, winners with app-based ideas will gain access to mentoring and the tools needed to build up their iOS or Android based apps, receive credits for Facebook ads and Parse, plus have access to free tools and credits from partners to help with product testing, recruiting, customer care, video conferencing, legal services, and more.
More information on Challenge 22 can be obtained from website www.challenge22.qa.
