Saudi home to 10% of Arab world's 100 promising startups: WEF

Ten startups from Saudi Arabia have been listed in the Arab world's 100 most promising startups, according to the World Economic Forum's (WEF) latest report.

The Kingdom’s promising startups include Ajeer, DokkanAfkar.com, FalconViz, Foodics, HalalaH, Lucidya, Mathaqi, Mrsool, Noon Academy and Unifonic.

Jordan tops with 27 startups, with the UAE coming second with 19 startups in the list.

Ride-hailing app Careem, which was recently acquired by Uber for $3.1 billion, finds a place in the list.

“The Arab world will need its private sector to address youth unemployment, the current skills gap for the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the inclusion of women in the workforce. Start-ups, and the entrepreneurs building them, are key to a strategic public-private dialogue on these issues and to creating corresponding new opportunities in society,” said Mirek Dusek, Deputy Head of the Centre for Geopolitical and Regional Affairs, Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum.

 Meanwhile, regional start-up funding reached a new high last year, registering a 31 percent increase year-on-year, said MAGNiTT, a data platform for startups in the Middle East.

Foreign investment remained stable in 2018 with 30 percent from outside the Arab world, while Fintech took over e-commerce as the top industry as a result of an eight percent increase in deals since 2017, it added.