UAE’s ‘Make it in the Emirates’ competition invites tech startups to pitch sustainable solutions ahead of COP28

UAE’s ‘Make it in the Emirates’ competition invites tech startups to pitch sustainable solutions ahead of COP28

Abu Dhabi: Ahead of COP28 in November this year, UAE’s Ministry of the Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) is hosting the second edition of the ‘Make it in the Emirates’ competition for technology startups from May 31 to June 1. Open to businesses worldwide, startups focusing on sustainability, decarbonisation and digitalisation are encouraged to participate. Twenty-four startups will be selected from the initial pool of submissions, and the event will take place at the Abu Dhabi Energy Centre. The competition invites startups to pitch innovations and technologies, and winning companies can develop and deploy their technologies in the UAE. Tariq Al Hashimi, Director of Advanced Technology Adoption and Development at the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, said, “Startups also have promising solutions for some of the world’s most pressing issues, including climate change. But access to funding and other enablers remains a huge challenge.” In 2022, the first Make It in the Emirates Forum received an attendance of 1,800 stakeholders. It resulted in offtake agreements worth Dh110 billion, with national enterprises committing to purchase more than 300 products from local suppliers to support their future growth plans. The judging panel will include Aspire, EDGE Group representatives, Mohamed Bin Zayed