Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, today announced the expansion of its Saudi Arabia network with the launch of new flights to Al Qassim. This addition brings the total number of Etihad's Saudi Arabian destinations to four.Beginning June 24th, 2024, Etihad will operate four weekly flights between Abu Dhabi's Zayed International Airport and Al Qassim's Prince Naif Bin Abdulaziz International Airport (ELQ)."This new service isn't just about adding a new destination," said Arik De, Chief Revenue and Commercial Officer at Etihad Airways. "It's a celebration of 20 years of connecting Abu Dhabi with the rich culture and economic opportunities of Saudi Arabia."The new route caters to both business travelers and tourists, offering a gateway to Al Qassim's unique cultural heritage, lively markets, and stunning date palm groves. Passengers can also experience Etihad's renowned hospitality and service standards, along with the exceptional comfort offered by the airline's new home – Terminal A at Zayed International Airport.In addition to the Al Qassim launch, Etihad is boosting flight frequencies to a number of existing destinations starting June 15th. This includes new routes to Antalya and Jaipur, announced earlier this year. Frequencies will increase for Thiruvananthapuram (up to 10 weekly flights), Amman (up to 14 weekly flights), Cairo (up to 24 weekly flights), Karachi (up to 17 weekly flights), and Colombo (up to 20 weekly flights).These expansions represent a significant increase in Etihad's network. Weekly flights will grow from 642 last summer to 855 in 2024, a 33% increase. The airline's reach also expands from 65 to 76 destinations, enhancing global connectivity.

Cairo: Egypt's Entrepreneur Awards (EEA), the first platform in Egypt that recognises, and connects Egypt's most innovative, successful, and resilient entrepreneurs, announced a total of 35 shortlisted candidates, as selected by 38 prominent jury members across 11 categories.This year’s edition brought new categories including “Next Gen Intrapreneur of the Year”, “Rising Entrepreneur of the Year”, “Entrepreneur for Good Award” and “From Art to Business”Across all the categories, the 3rd edition of the competition received 286 applications entrepreneurs, and after significant deliberations by a panel of distinguished jury members, 35 numbers of nominees were chosen as finalists.Amr Mansi, EEA’s Founder and CEO, spoke at the shortlisting ceremony about how these finalists, and previous editions’ finalists and winners, are distinguished by their innovative and successful businesses and their tangible impact on their respective industries. “We created this platform three years ago with a mission to recognize local, and now regional entrepreneurs, in a way that acknowledges their journey to success that has not been done before. Through challenging times, these entrepreneurs have shown resilience and created real value for their industries in innovative and tangible ways such as product market fit, growth and financial stability, as well as social impact. They are an unseen force contributing to this economy and a source of inspiration for the next generation of entrepreneurs.” Mansi also thanked EEA’s jury members, who are some of Egypt’s most dynamic and inspirational entrepreneurs, business leaders and industry pioneers.For the first time, the shortlisting event witnessed the “Ideation Competition” that is created by EEA & MINT by EGBANK. The competition targets young entrepreneurs from the age of 18 till 29 years. The young entrepreneurs presented their ideas and will be chosen based on the clarity, usability and scalability of this idea, in addition to its impact socially, environmentally, economically or financial benefits for the community and stakeholders.The jury members will meet to deliberate and interview the finalists over the next few weeks. Selected winners from the 14 categories will be announced at the awards ceremony on the 10th of June in Cairo.EEA is presented by IEvents and powered by Tatweer Misr. The official Bank partner: EGBANK. Orange and Pepsico are both co- partners for this year’s edition.Official Media Partner: Startup scene. Industrial Partner: El Sewedy electric, Official Fashion Partner: Concrete, Payment Solutions Partner: Geidea,Supported by Partner; Dolato Supported by partner; Nestlé. Tech partner: collard, TV Partner; Al Sharq Business , Radio Partners; Nile & Nogoum FM, Ecosystem Partners; She wins Arabia by IFC, Mint by EGBANK, American Chamber( AMCHAM), Endeavor, Entrepreneurs Organizations (EO) and SYNDO. Digital Partner; Yellow & Co, Post production partner; Snappers. Design House; Amr Helmy DesignsBelow are the finalists who have been shortlisted for each category:Fashion Business Award: Maram Aboul Enein -Founder & Creative Director MARAM , Aya Abdelraouf     - Co-Founder BE IDNIE Mounaz Abdelraouf - Co-Founder BE INDIE, Mohamed Abdelraouf - Co-Founder BE INDIE, Vano Alexanian - Co-Founder BE INDIE , Ahmed Hamdi - Founder & Creative Director Nile Eye WearInterior Design Award: Heba El Gabaly - Founder & CEO Efreshli, Nourhan Kanjo - Co-founder & Managing Director KANJO Design House , Dayana Kanjo - Co-founder and Managing Director KANJO Design House, Ahmed Dsuki - Chief Designer BLCK, Amena Mashhour - Chief Designer BLCKFrom Art to Business: Mustafa Sharara - Co-Founder & CEO SYNC School, Omar Heraize - Co-founder & Chief Content Officer SYNC School , Abdelrahman Selim - Co Founder & CEO 2oolameme, Sarah Aboulkhair - Co Founder & CCO 2oolameme, Layla Ghaleb - Co Founder GOODSPACE, Mahmoud Shoukry - Co Founder GOODSPACE.Next Gen Entrepreneur of the Year: Nada El Ahwal - Chief Strategy Officer Transmar, Mohamed Khattab - EVP, b_labs & Digital Commerce B Tech, Mohamed El Kahhal - Managing Director Kahhal 1871Digital Solutions & Customer Experience Award: Rafik Zaher - Co founder Cartona, Mahmoud Talaat- Co founder & CEO Cartona, Mohamed Younes - Co founder & CEO Khazenly , Mohamed Montasser - Co Founder & Chief Experience Officer Khazenly , Osama Al Jammali       - Co Founder & CCO Khazenly , Ahmed Dewidar - Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer Khazenly , Ahmad Yousry - CEO Rabbit Mart , Ismail Hafez - COO Rabbit Mart , Tarek El Geresy - CFO           Rabbit Mart , Walid Shabana - CTO Rabbit Mart Mohammed Elhorishy - Co Founder & CEO Taager, Abdelrahman Sherief - Co Founder & VP of Growth Taager, Ismail Omar - Co Founder and CTO   Taager, Ahmed Ezzat Kadous - CEO & Co-Founder Pharmacy Marts, Haitham El-Ghotni - Co-Founder & CBO Pharmacy Marts - Ahmed Mazhar - Co-Founder & CSO Pharmacy Marts, Mahmoud Shousha - Co-Founder & Sales Head Pharmacy MartsRising Entrepreneur of the Year: Mohamed Wahid - Founder & CEO Impactyn, Ali Mokhtar - Co-founder & Head of Investment          Impactyn, Amr Zikry- Co-founder & Head of Operations Impactyn, Ramy Radwan           - Co-founder & PR Advisor Impactyn, Omar El Defrawy - Chief Executive Officer Slyndr, Andrew Morcos - Chief Operating Officer Slyndr, Moataz El Etreby - Chairman    Slyndr, Amr Gamal - Co Founder & CEO Octane, Ziad el Adawy - Co Founder & CCO Octane, Hatem Farag - Co Founder & COO Octane, Hatem Mamoun - Co Founder & Engineering Director OctaneEntrepreneur for Good Award: Mustafa Abd Ellatif - Co Founder & CEO E-Youth, DR. Ahmed Fathy- Co Founder & CEO MEDEX, Dr. Ahmed Ibrahim - Co Founder & Ph. Manager MEDEX, Rawia Saeid - Co Founder & Marketing & PR MEDEX, Karim Dabbous - Co founder & CEO E-TadweerExperiential Dining Business Award: Amr Barghash - Co Founder The Sage Experience , Ahmed El Meligy - Co Founder The Sage Experience , Karim Abdelrahman - Executive Chef / Founder Avec Karim, Mona Saeed Mohamed Nassef - CEO Tabali, Mohamed Abdel-Hamid Sabbour - Co-founder, Mohamed Saeed Mohamed Nassef, Vice Chairman of Board of Directors Tabali, Said Mohamed Nassef, Co founder & CEO Impact TabaliSports & Wellbeing Award: Ayman Hakky - Founder & Managing Director Trifactory, Khaled Nagy Ibrahim - Co-founder & CEO SR Padel, Seif Adel Abou Senna - COO SR Padel, Ahmed Ayman- CEO and Co-Founder Linos, Ahmed Shalaby - Sales Director & Co-Founder Linos, Ahmed Sedky - Marketing Director & Co-Founder    Linos, Ahmed El Shamy Co-Founder LinosReal Estate Services Award: Mostafa El Beltagy - CEO Nawy, Aly Rafea - Chief Experience Officer Nawy, Mohamed Abou Ghanima - COO Nawy, Abdel- Azim Osman - Chief Marketing Officer - Nawy, Ahmed Rafea -Chief Business Development Officer Nawy, Ahmed Selim - Founder & CEO Co-55, Farah Selim - Co-Founder & COO Co-55, Norhan Selim - Co-Founder Co-55. Ahmed El Raggal - Co-Founder & COO Partment, Nadim Nagui - Co-founder & CEO Partment, Chinmaya Das - Co-Founder & CTO PartmentFintech / Fintech Enabler Award: Marwan Kenawy - Co Founder & CEO Dsqaures, Ayman Essawy - Co Founder Dsqaures, Momtaz Moussa - Co Founder Dsqaures, Amr Sultan - Co founder & CEO           BInk, Tarek Elsheikh - Co-Founder & Chief Risk Officer BInk, Ahmed Atalla - Co Founder & CEO Raseedi

CAIRO : YoHo, the leading audio social platform in MENA, initiates attention-grabbing campaigns during Ramadan, encouraging people to deliver the power of kindness, unity, respect, and gratitude throughout the month.YoHo Chef, designed to introduce and teach unique Middle Eastern dishes, has been going viral on social media. Since its launch, numerous users have shared delicacies made according to the recipes with the hashtag#YoHoChef, under which they aired views on the food and their understanding of the cultural significance behind every dish."I really enjoyed the YoHo Chef event during Ramadan." said a participant, "It was a great way to learn about different Middle Eastern cuisines and try out new recipes. Looking forward to more events like this in the future!"Apart from YoHo Chef, some other innovative events are launched by YoHo to help build an inclusive environment for its users. Ramadan Voice, for instance, aims to promote unity and understanding between different cultural backgrounds by offering a platform to showcase users' Quran recitation and Tawasheeh (a mix of Quranic verses and classic poetry) skills.According to a spokesperson from YoHo, Ramadan Voice has become an annual tradition event on this platform. "We set up a full competition process, from audition to final, to encourage users' participation. We look to help promote the sense of community among users through this competition."It's noteworthy that charity activities are also what YoHo has focused on during Ramadan. For example, 'A Message to Your Heart', the program designed to encourage users to express inner voices, aims to help people solve problems they encounter during Ramadan.Some other initiatives, such as the 'Help Cancer Children' campaign, have also gained attention from local supporters, donators, and media outlets. "In this campaign, we have partnered with various charities and organizations to provide toys and money and essential items to children in need during Ramadan." added the spokesperson.As an audio social platform featuring group chat and game rooms, YoHo is always committed to creating positive social impacts and uniting its users more tightly through engaging and meaningful events."We fully recognize the significance of Ramadan for our users and supporters in the Middle East, and what we initiated aligns with the spirit of Ramadan, which emphasizes charity and giving back to the community." said the spokesperson, "Additionally, YoHo will continue its efforts to create more social values by taking full advantages of the socialization of platform in the future."The latest data released by data.ai (formerly App Annie) shows that YoHo ranked top 10 App Store & Google Play best-selling social apps in all GCC countries.

Cairo: Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading global financial centre in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, has signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Mastercard that aims to drive digital transformation through partnerships with innovative FinTech companies.The partnership between DIFC and Mastercard will provide FinTech start-ups and established companies with access to Mastercard's network and expertise, as well as DIFC's world-class financial ecosystem. The collaboration will focus on creating new payment solutions and digital services, as well as enhancing existing ones.“At Mastercard, we are committed to driving innovation through collaboration between different players in the financial ecosystem. The collaboration between FinTech companies and established players would enable us to drive digital transformation. We are delighted to participate in DIFC’s programmes to accelerate innovation in the financial technology sector with the aim of boosting the country’s digital economy,” said Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President, Market Development, EEMEA, Mastercard.Mastercard’s collaboration with DIFC underpins the objective of the financial hub’s first global Venture Studio – DIFC Launchpad – which seeks to fast-track the growth of the UAE’s financial ecosystem and serve as a business enabler for venture studios, allowing them to set up and scale from DIFC. Venture studios build start-ups, taking them from the concept stage to launch while providing capital and guidance through the incubation period. They also help start-ups to grow using internal capabilities and external networks.The DIFC Launchpad programme expects to support the launch of more than 200 new ventures, with over 100 of them being scale-ups that will collectively create over 8,000 new jobs and attract over $544 million in venture capital.Mohammad Alblooshi, Head of Innovation Hub at DIFC, said: "At DIFC, we are committed to fostering innovation and growth in the FinTech sector, and our strategic collaboration with Mastercard is a testament to that. By leveraging Mastercard's expertise and network, we can empower FinTech start-ups and established companies to create new payment solutions and digital services that enhance the region's financial ecosystem. Together, we aim to fast-track the growth of the UAE's financial sector and serve as a business enabler for venture studios, bringing about significant benefits to the FinTech sector in the Middle East.”The collaboration between DIFC and Mastercard is expected to bring about significant benefits to the fintech sector in the Middle East, providing them with the tools and resources needed to drive innovation and growth in the region's digital economy.