(MENAFN- Jordan Times) AMMAN - The startup scene in the Kingdom has been experiencing a significant boom over the last decade, according to sector representatives, who noted that many Jordanian startups have gained international recognition for their creative approaches.According to the Global Startup Ecosystem Index, Jordan is positioned 4th in the region and 66th worldwide.
Drawing inspiration from her passion for fashion, architecture graduate Dana Al Fayez launched a retail real estate company, Nomad, which uses vacant spaces in different parts of Amman.
The main aim of the startup company was to“democraticise” vacant spaces for businesses, she said.
Another startup on a trajectory of growth is Kitchefy, launched by
Marwan Abu Sakha and Abdullah Al Absi in late 2021.
“The goal of Kitchefy's model is to solve the utilisation issue for existing commercial kitchens by creating our own delivery-only food brands,” noted Abu Sakha.
As of the beginning of this year, Kitchefy expanded to the Saudi market.
According to Abdulrahman Ghodayah, a chief technology officer at Kitchefy, commercial kitchens use only 40 per cent of their capacity, while 60 per cent goes to waste.
“Venture capital helped the growth of Kitchefy,” Human Resources Operation Officer Huba Halaseh said, adding that the company has 100 new locations in Saudi Arabia with a menu that revolves around fast food dishes.
With a focus on sustainable and efficient farming, Aromaponic is a startup designed to produce fresh herbs and vegetables while simultaneously producing essential oils and other aromatic compounds, according to its founder Farooq Tawalebah.
“The idea behind Aromaponic is to create a sustainable and efficient farming system that maximises the use of resources and minimises waste,” Tawalebah said.
This method can save up to 90 per cent of water used in traditional farming, which is essential in an arid country like Jordan, Tawalebah added.
“It's a type of sustainable agriculture that combines aquaponics with the production of aromatic plants. The technology aims to provide a natural and healthy way of growing plants while reducing water consumption and improving plant yield,” Tawalebah noted, adding that so far they have a small team of three full time employees.
Jordanian startup ecosystem is getting“more mature”, although it does not have as many companies as some countries in the region, Senior Programme Officer Yaman Alaryan from Flat6Labs said.
“Flat6Labs was established in Egypt in 2011, and today we have more than 400 investments in the region. Our organisation is also in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, Tunisia, Lebanon and Jordan,” Alaryan elaborated, adding that the organisation entered Jordan in 2021.
“In Jordan, we have a $20 million fund with a mission to invest in 19 startups in the upcoming three years,” Alaryan noted.