The upcoming ninth edition of the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival (SEF) has announced the launch of “Sharjah’s Young Entrepreneurs,” a new dedicated zone designed to cultivate entrepreneurial skills in children aged 7 to 12. Organized by the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa), the initiative aims to provide a platform for young minds to express their ideas, stimulate their imagination, and embark on their entrepreneurial journey from ideation to innovation.
Applications for the inaugural cohort are open until January 18th, offering a hands-on learning experience for aspiring young founders.
Fostering Curiosity From A Young Age
The initiative provides a practical and age-appropriate educational experience, allowing participants to explore core entrepreneurship concepts through applied learning, idea development, and pitch training in a supportive and interactive environment.
“Entrepreneurship is a curiosity that is planted early, shaped by experience, and grows through discovery and the development of self-confidence,” said H.E. Sara Balhaif Al Nuaimi, Executive Director of Sheraa.
She added, “Through the ‘Sharjah’s Young Entrepreneurs’ zone, we provide children with a space to express their ideas and engage with concepts of innovation and initiative in a way that stimulates their imagination, opening up horizons for creative thinking. This comes as part of a vision that believes true investment begins with building minds, developing creativity, and instilling the values of initiative at an early age to prepare a generation capable of turning ideas into sustainable impact.”
From Pitch Training To Prize Money
Following the online application process, a judging committee will select the top 10 participants to join an exclusive training workshop held during SEF 2024. This workshop will prepare them to present their ideas in the initiative’s final pitch competition.
Each finalist will be given five minutes to pitch their concept on stage, followed by a five-minute Q&A session with the judges. The first-place winner will receive a prize of 10,000 AED and a family staycation at a Shurooq destination. Three winners will be awarded trophies, and all participants will receive certificates of participation.
To further showcase their projects, the festival has allocated 10 interactive booths where the young finalists can present their business ideas and commercial potential to attendees over the two-day event.
About Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival
The “Sharjah’s Young Entrepreneurs” zone is one of 10 carefully designed areas at the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival 2024, each focusing on a specific stage or aspect of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. The ninth edition of SEF will be held under the theme “Where We Belong” on January 31st and February 1st at the Sharjah Research Technology and Innovation Park. The festival is expected to attract approximately 14,000 visitors and feature over 300 business leaders, investors, and inspirational speakers, reinforcing its position as a comprehensive platform for the region’s entrepreneurs and innovators.
Source: Sharjah24
