With Qatar envisioned to be a digital industry hub in the world, the government is on an intensified drive to further boost the country’s growing tech startup industry. In line with this, the Ministry of Transport and Communication (MoTC) is inviting local and international investors who are interested in partnering with Qatar-based startups to participate in the upcoming Qatar IT Conference and Exhibition (QITCOM) which will open on October 29.
Through QITCOM’s ‘Make the Deal’ programme at the Entrepreneurship Zone, investors will be connected with high-impact technology startups in the country. Doha-based tech entrepreneurs will also have a chance to meet with investors and build a global network to grow their business. Applications for startups and investors to participate in the startup-investor matchmaking event are accepted online until September 7.
“We’re working with government and private sector partners to promote cooperation between large multinational, SMEs, and emerging companies. Our vision, which is one of co-creation and collaboration aims to make Qatar a digital industry hub in the world, attracting local and international players. And QITCOM is a platform to connect multinational businesses to local businesses and to connect them with Qatar projects, especially in the digital sector,” Reem Mohamed Al Mansoori, Assistant Undersecretary of Digital Society Development at the MoTC said in a previous interview with The Peninsula.
To date, the MoTC’s Digital Incubation Center (DIC) has already incubated over 100 tech startup companies since it was launched in 2011.
The centre was created to boost ICT innovation in Qatar, particularly among young people at the critical early stages of starting or growing their technology-related business.
“Right now the top trends in terms of the techniques they are using are Advanced Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT). Also, there’s a main focus now on cyber security,” DIC Manager Duha Al Buhendi added.
According to its 2018 report, incubated startups at DIC were able to provide 203 jobs for men and women entrepreneurs, bringing the total number of jobs provided by the incubator companies since its inception to about 402.
There are 58 startups currently incubated at the centre, while 37 startups have successfully graduated from the programme. The DIC has also invested a total of QR13m in its startups, with the support of the Qatar Development Bank, Qatar Science & Technology Park, and a number of angel investors.
