Amman : As part of its Incubator and Accelerator Development Program (IADP), the Innovative Startups and SMEs Fund (ISSF) - the largest investment fund of its kind in Jordan - has granted a USD 250,000 fund to the iPARK@Aqaba Entrepreneurship Program, emphasizing efforts to support early-stage startups and SMEs throughout the Kingdom. iPARK@Aqaba is the first business incubator in the city and seeks to empower aspiring entrepreneurs within the tourism, logistics, entertainment and services sectors.

Under its multiple tracks - which encompass structured awareness and capacity building programs, incubation services and networking opportunities - the iPARK@Aqaba Entrepreneurship Program is expected to support 98 ideas and startups, as well as generate 250 jobs, subsequently capitalizing on the entrepreneurial potential of Aqaba, advancing the local ecosystem and driving economic growth.  

“At the ISSF, we seek to develop the entrepreneurial ecosystem through funding high quality investment readiness programs, incubators and accelerators targeting youth and women entrepreneurs across all governorates . By funding the iPARK@Aqaba Entrepreneurship Program, we are providing young female and male entrepreneurs with a valuable opportunity to establish and nurture their innovative and commercially viable startups. This promising program contributes to fostering innovation, developing a robust entrepreneurial landscape, creating jobs and eventually furthering economic advancement,” commented ISSF Programs Manager, Dr. Shadi Al-Khamayseh.

In turn, iPARK Incubation Director, Serene Duwayri, added, “The iPARK@Aqaba Entrepreneurship Program was designed to target the specific requirements of the local community, create value-added jobs for youth and enhance the growth prospect and integration of the national economy. We aim to develop a dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem in Aqaba that establishes a sustainable culture of entrepreneurship and startups with clear market demands and potential partnerships. We firmly believe that the dynamic resulting from this program will continue to flourish, attract support organizations from other cities and hence become commercially viable beyond the timeline of the program.”

The ISSF is registered as a Jordanian private shareholding company. The objective of the ISSF is to support and elevate Jordan’s entrepreneurial and innovation landscape by facilitating the establishment of new investment funds that serve the ecosystem; making direct investments in innovative, export-oriented and scalable local startups; as well as implementing initiatives that improve the capabilities of Jordanian entrepreneurs and startup teams through training, capacity building and targeted incubation and acceleration programs.

-Ends- 

About the Innovative Startups and SMEs Fund

The ISSF is a national project established in 2017 as a private shareholding company to actively promote a fundamental shift within the local entrepreneurial and innovation landscape. The ISSF - which is the largest investment fund of its kind in Jordan - is implemented in cooperation with the World Bank over a duration of six years, concluding in November 2023. During this period, the World Bank foresees the ISSF to make both direct and indirect investments (the latter in investment funds) in 150-200 local innovation companies and build the capacities of at least 825 entrepreneurs and SMEs through specialized training to qualify them for prospective investments. The total working capital of the ISSF is USD 98 million, with a USD 48 million investment from the Central Bank of Jordan and a USD 50 million investment from the World Bank. The ISSF is committed to facilitating funding for Jordanian early-stage startups and SMEs, particularly those demonstrating ambitious vision and high growth potential. The ISSF endeavors to foster a thriving and supportive entrepreneurial environment that enables promising local entrepreneurs to transform innovative projects into sustainable startups; generate jobs for Jordanian men and women; and prompt economic sectors that serve export markets by capitalizing on the creative and technical capabilities of entrepreneurs and management teams across Jordan.

For more information, please visit the website at www.issfjo.com  

For more information or assistance, please contact us at:
Tel:  +962 6 585 4002/6
Fax:  +962 6 585 3001
P.O. Box:  930391, Amman 11193, Jordan
Email: media@bidayamarcom.com  

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