ArabNet鼓舞青年企业家

Billed as the first international conference for the Arab web industry, ArabNet in Beirut attracted some of the biggest names in the business world. From event sponsors like Google and Microsoft to regional powerhouses like Maktoob and AraMex, industry leaders turned out to hear from a younger generation on how to improve regional connections and build business.

If I put the computer on the podium for you, how are you gonna use it?

28-year-old Omar Christidis, one of the entrepreneurs who organize the conference believes the keys to opening the region is simple: better communication.

There are clusters of things going on. So in Saudi Arabia people know each other and they’re starting web business and there's a community there. And in Egypt, there's a big community and they also all know each other and they're all interconnected. And also in Lyon, people know each other. But people in Lyon don't know what's going on in Saudi, don't know what's going on in Egypt. There is not really anywhere where these guys all get together and they talk.

During the conference, a competition, ten entrepreneurs from several different countries in the region presented their ideas for harnessing the power of technology. From a new cellphone application that offers quick access to local information to a website designed to get in the right person into the right job. The entrepreneurs pitched their ideas to judges and business leaders.

You know, the key for entrepreneurs is that they are in it for the long run. You are in it to build your company. You are in it to build value. As you build your organization, people will notice. You will be able to eventually find an investor. You will be able to go public. You will be able to do anything you want.

The winner of the competition, 28-year-old Nour El Fadl from Jordan. The freelance designer created a website to help other freelancers connect with the right company. The key for her: take an existing idea and make it local.

Language is the most important thing. Wherever you open it, make sure it exists in that language. And I think that's all you need really.

Beyond the speeches, panels, and a lovely banquet to present the awards, the most valuable thing may be simply putting the next generation of business dreamers in the same room with current industry leaders. Simple hand in hand networking.

Now the ideas that these young entrepreneurs are presenting may not be the most unique of ideas. In fact, many of them have been applied elsewhere in the world and have succeeded as a business model. The key is to apply that regionally to this culture, to this language all in the hopes that the Middle East will continue to grow as the burgeoning economic zone.

Cal Perry, cnn, Beirut.

Glossary:

bill: to advertise sth with a particular description (感谢ktdid童鞋)

pitch: to try to persuade someone to do something
burgeoning: 迅速发展的