Queen Rania Honors QRNEC Entrepreneurs

(Office of Her Majesty, Press Department- Amman) – Celebrating Jordan’s young entrepreneurs this year, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah honored the winners of the 5th Queen Rania National Entrepreneurship Competition (QRNEC), in a ceremony held today at Princess Sumaya University for Technology (PSUT) and attended by HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan.

Her Majesty praised all the projects that participated in the competition intended to develop Jordanian youth leadership skills and foster a culture of entrepreneurship among them.

Her Majesty gave away the nine awards for the winning teams in the technology projects and the social entrepreneurship categories. HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan gave Her Majesty a copy of an animated movie of the Queen’s bestselling children’s book “The Sandwich Swap” as a gift from everyone at Princess Sumaya University.

HRH Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at PSUT and President of The Royal Scientific Society, commended the patronage of Queen Rania of the Award ceremony, highlighting the competition’s role in developing youth as strong and competent individuals, capable of pushing the wheel of development further out.

“The various programs and activities held year-round by QRCE have been instrumental in boosting Jordan’s presence and role at the regional and international levels. The center has evolved into a destination for global companies and national establishments, aiming at employing their resources and expertise to help the center accomplish its objectives in disseminating the culture of entrepreneurship and leadership among youth and exploiting their potentials,” HRH Princess Sumaya said.

“Entrepreneurship is essential for supporting the national economy, given its ability to create new valuable jobs for a wide spectrum of graduates and qualified individuals. Bearing this fact in mind, QRCE saves no effort to provide young people with all means necessary to take their skills to the next level,” HRH Princess Sumaya added.

Compared to previous rounds, the QRNEC 2012 witnessed increased participation with 250 student teams comprised of 700 students who attended several training courses and specialized workshops in enhancing entrepreneurship and business skills.

For his part, the Executive Director of Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship (QRCE), Eng. Farhan Kalaldeh expressed his appreciation for Her Majesty’s constant keenness to back such national initiatives.

Kalaldeh noted that this year’s Competition is different from the previous rounds in terms of the larger number of participants, the diverse topics which the projects pursued, and the new focus on social entrepreneurship and schools, highlighting the competition’s role in grooming young talents for greater responsibilities.

Upon the conclusion of the ceremony, HRH Princess Sumaya handed out honorary plaques to the Jordan Ahli Bank, Intel Corporation, and N2V, in recognition of their sponsorship and continuous support to the competition.

A total of 31 competitors were nominated for the final phase of the Competition in three categories. As for university students, Applikable Team won the $10,000 first prize in the category of technology projects, whereas BEST Team and Mubstar Team earned $7,000 and $4,000 for the second and third places respectively. With regard to social entrepreneurship projects, Readerjeyeh Team came first and received $4,000, while the second place winner, Reyadah Team took home $2,000.

School students also had their share in the cash prizes; the first place winner, Blue Team, received $2,000, while $1,500 and $1,000 were granted for Growing the Green Fodder Team and Adam Soft Team, winners of the second and third places respectively.

The QRNEC awards amount to over $30,000, awarded to projects in the fields of ICT, Renewable Energy, Water, Life Sciences, Advanced Technologies, and Social Entrepreneurship.

The Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship (QRCE) is A Non-Profit organization established in 2004 to help develop Technology Entrepreneurship in Jordan. The Center is part of El Hassan Science City and El Hassan Business Park, and plays the role of a national Center of Excellence for Entrepreneurship.