ICC provides students with a unique learning experience to understand the business and entrepreneurship landscape in Egypt, Africa and the Middle East, including complex issues around consumer behavior, economic trends, regulatory and policy reforms, technology adoption and the supporting ecosystem. The case-solving competition aims to blend a cross-cultural understanding of working with Egyptian students and entrepreneurs with a good grasp of Egyptian culture in a well-designed process.

Every year ICC focuses on a startup in a specific sector in the Middle East. We recognize the value of such competitions to promote cultural fluency between students and introduce them to the multifaceted challenges that startups face, especially in developing countries. Startup Case Competitions are a great practical learning tool that engage students in the real world of entrepreneurship.

The competition aims at empowering international innovative students and university networks to raise their awareness of steps taken in the entrepreneurial ecosystem and engage in developing solutions to enhance the business operations of emerging startups facing the current challenges provided by the outbreak and post of COVID – 19.

Application Deadline: Feb 26, 2022 (Cairo Time)

Background

In April 2019, 6 International and 3 national universities participated in the competition, with a total of 34 students, 8 mentors and 14 Judges to help find solutions to challenges facing SWVL; a revolutionary idea that was born from passion, loyalty, and persistence to face all challenges on the table, Swvl is not just a means to facilitate commuting, but a hunger to strive for solutions, encourage the contribution of youth in innovation and inspire change. SWVL is an Egyptian Startup, the first Middle East $USD 1.5 billion ‘unicorn’ to list on Nasdaq US and the largest African unicorn debut on any U.S.-listed exchange

However, providing the outbreak of COVID – 19, and in April 2020, the case competition was held online with 11 AUC student teams competing via Zoom on identifying challenges confronting a full-service digital agency, Robusta Studio; is a tech agency working with a diverse client base across different sectors and industries on implementing digital transformation programs.

ICC’s third run in March 2021 had a flavor from each of the last two case competitions; it was held virtually and targeted international students who wish to learn and find solutions to challenges facing rising startups in Egypt especially beyond the pandemic. ICC 21 had a total of 55 team submissions, comprising a number of 202 participants from 20 nationalities. The case of Schaduf was selected and developed in an academic framework to crack their approach and best practices to deal with the current challenges. Schaduf; one of the pioneers of sustainability in the Middle East since 2011. Schaduf believes in social responsibility towards emerging issues such as food security, food sovereignty, and the expansion of urban spaces at the expense of green spaces. They create more sustainable and eco-friendly urban cities. They specialize in diverse sections of services to make sure that they deliver the goal of sustainable urban cities, such as landscape design, urban farming, green walls, green roofs.

Despite the different structures of the 2019, 2020, and 2021 case competitions, all proved to be highly impactful and memorable to the students and the startups, mentors, judges, and the entire team. And same as ICC 21, ICC 22 will be virtual, aiming to include more international teams.

Objectives

• Help students from different majors organize their thinking around an integrative planning framework while sprinting out innovative and constructive solutions.
• Provide incentives for students to apply their best learning practices to a real business case in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, especially after the pandemic.
• Help rising entrepreneurial ventures solve their challenges unconventionally; while supporting their journeys.
• Promote cultural exchange between the different teams and help to improve communication skills between the students.
• Assist students with building an effective network with employers, moving their school–based knowledge to the labor market.

Concept

The competition aims at empowering innovative students and university networks through engaging them in developing solutions to enhance the business operations of emerging startups facing the current challenges mainly provided by the outbreak of COVID – 19. A scale-up case is selected and developed in an academic framework to crack their approach and best practices to deal with the current challenges.

Social Media Exposure

An intensive social media campaign will be run, using Business Association, Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and El-Khazindar Business Research and Case Center, as well as, School of Business official media channels, which cultivate following of over 30,000 national and international students, faculty and staff, and the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Egypt and globally.

Disclaimer

All ICC sessions will be recorded for fair use purposes. CEI may use your photos, videos, or quotes for promotional purposes, and these may be circulated in the CEI printings, website, and social media accounts. This right may be used by the CEI partners and sponsors, including but not limited to, KCC, BA, and the AUC School of Business. Judges will have access to these recordings for evaluation purposes. We rely heavily on these recordings to promote further ICC versions among the interested individuals, and your mandatory acceptance to release them will be highly appreciated.

By participating in ICC, you acknowledge and agree that CEI and its partners and sponsors have the irreversible unconditional right to use these recordings under the fair use rules.

Generally speaking, this right is NOT negotiable. However, if you have concerns about the use of the mentioned recordings, please contact cei@aucegypt.edu before applying to the competition. Such cases will be resolved on a case-by-case basis.

Competition Timeline

Application Open

Feb 2, 2022, at 12:00 Mid-night (Cairo Local Time)

Application Closed

Feb 26, 2022, at 12 Mid-night (Cairo Local Time)

Acceptance Email

Feb 28, 2022: Check your email regularly on this day

Opening Ceremony

March 2, 2022: Orientation session and students on-boarded

Case Crack

March 4, 2022: Case is announced, competition started, and teams are working for 24 hours

Competition Day

March 5, 2022: Students present presentations

Second Round

5-top-winner presentations and winner is announced.

We invite young academics to submit papers or essays on the future of a sustainable and inclusive financial sector.

The global financial sector continues to undergo rapid evolution with new technologies enabling the digitization of money, innovative trends involving artificial intelligence and DLT, and a greater focus on financing SMEs and financial inclusion.  We see a long-term transition toward a sustainable financial industry, while in the short-term there is a need to support the economic recovery from the pandemic.

We invite young academics to submit papers or essays addressing one of the following topics:

• The future of finance, or what will financial centers look like in 2030
• How the financial sector can contribute to a sustainable economic recovery from the current pandemic
• Innovations in sustainable finance and their impact on the financial industry
• How financial centers can promote inclusive finance
• New ways of successfully financing small and medium-sized enterprises

We will also consider papers on topics not mentioned above, but relevant to the work of international financial centers.

The top three finalists will have the unique opportunity to present their research at WAIFC’s Annual General Meeting to be held in Casablanca, Morocco in October 2022.  Our Chair will announce the winner of the best paper and award a prize of €3,000.  The runners-up will be awarded prizes of €2,000 (2nd place) and €1,000 (3rd place).

Who can enter?

We invite young academics from around the world to make a submission. WAIFC is a global organization, and we aim to make this a global competition. The Award is open to all countries, including non-WAIFC member countries.  As our focus is on finance, we particularly encourage submissions from Ph.D. students in finance, economics, mathematics, computer science, or other similar fields to participate. We are, however, seeking new ideas, so a background in any field of study is welcome as long as your paper or essay relates to finance and meets our submission criteria. Submissions are welcome from those in universities, research institutes, think tanks, and other similar institutions.

Multiple authors can contribute to a paper or essay, but as we are seeking ideas from bright young minds, at least one author must be under the age of 35 as of 15 June 2022.

How will the winners be selected?

We will assess the papers against the following criteria: (1) novelty, (2) topicality, (3) innovative thinking, (4) scientific merit, (5) relevance for financial centers, and (6) practical applicability.

How to apply?

Applications to submit your paper or essay may be made no later than 15 May 2022 via our submission form.  Your final paper or essay must be submitted no later than 15 June 2022.

Full details on who can enter, how to enter, assessment criteria, etc. are detailed within our Award Handbook.  If you have any further questions, please email award@waifc.finance.

We look forward to receiving your submissions and hopefully meeting you in Casablanca later this year.

About the WAIFC

The World Alliance of International Financial Centers (WAIFC) is a non-profit association registered in Belgium, representing 21 leading international financial centers across four continents.  WAIFC members are governments agencies, associations, and similar institutions developing and promoting their financial centers.  WAIFC facilitates cooperation between its members, exchanging best practices and communication with the general public.