After a two week journey of training and hard work, work on the Deraya project in Southern Libya ended on the 15th of July 2024.

Following the Startup Weekend, the Hackathon targeted entrepreneurs and creatives from various cities in Southern Libya, including Sabha, Al-Qardah, Al-Sharqiyah, Brak Al-Shati, Murzuq, Ghat, Bent Bay, Al-Kufra, and Ubari. Over 134 teams registered, with 8 selected to participate based on the creativity of their ideas.

Lasting for two weeks, the Hackathon began with a week of intensive training ran by a group of experts across various fields. Participants first received instruction in project management and entrepreneurial project planning from trainer Mohammed Mahni. This equipped them with foundational insights into project administration, successful business plan structures, and effective implementation strategies. Following this, expert Mohammed Al-Ruqai’i delivered training on fundamental marketing and media practices for project administration. Trainer Mohammed Qais Al-Qanbari then covered financial management principles. The training series concluded with Mohammed bin Hamza and Al-Mu’tamar, who provided guidance on the core aspects of entrepreneurial projects and effective presentation techniques.

After completing the training week, participants began working on developing their ideas and preparing business plans for their projects. They collaborated closely with project mentors who provided ongoing feedback and facilitated connections with specialized trainers to address their inquiries.

At the conclusion of the two-week development and planning phase, participants presented their projects to a jury comprising Nour El-Khamisi, from the United Nations Development Fund, Tamil El-Deeb, a expert in entrepreneurship and emerging projects, and Mahmoud Abu-Salloum, a representative of the Moomken Organization.

The eight participating teams were as follows:

•The Itqan Team, who’s project aimed to develop a virtual training platform for technical skills and handicrafts

•The Aqar Team, who’s project aimed to develop an electronic application for real estate marketing

•The Proton team, who’s project aimed to develop a workspace specialised in technology and education

•The Diamond team, who’s project aimed to develop a training center in the field of robotics

•The Mopi team, wiho’s project aimed to develop a personal documents system through a digital platform allowing for the storage and access of personal documents

•The Zoom Sabha team with their Ray of Hope project, which aims to establish a training center for media professionals and photographers

•The Ubari Teacher team, who’s project aimed to develop a training center specialized in cyberspace for the Ubari municipality

•The Development team, who’s project aimed to develop a cultural and social entertainment club in Ubari, to provided training on traditional, manual and technical crafts

Participants presented their projects to the committee, where they answered questions and received direct feedback from the judges. They were evaluated based on several criteria, including the creativity of the idea, their presentation skills, the innovation and future plans, the expected impact of the project and the adaptability of the idea in the face of surrounding influential factors.

Participants were able to present their projects to the committee, answer questions and receive direct feedback from the judges. Participants were evaluated based on several criteria, including the creative idea, presentation and implementation skills, innovation and future plans, the expected impact of the project and the flexibility and adaptability of the idea and project plans to the surrounding influential factors.

Upon evaluation, the best participants were chosen to move onto the next stages, with the top three projects being:

1. Team Proton, with their project to develop a specialized workspace in technology receiving a rating of 81%

2. Team Zoom Sabha, with their Ray of Hope project receiving a rating of 74%

3. Team Development, with their project to establish a cultural and social entertainment club in Ubari receiving a rating of 70%

The results were announced to participants in a virtual closing ceremony, which was attended by entrepreneurs, coordinators and mentors from all teams. With this, the Deraya Hackathon for Southern Libya was concluded.

We hope that all entrepreneurs who participated in this edition can further develop their ideas, and can participate in future Deraya events to attain greater opportunities to implement their creative ideas.

Finally, many thanks to the trainers and experts who supervised this event, and to our emerging talents who sought to present creative ideas and solutions in our community. We wish success and prosperity to all emerging entrepreneurs, and as Libyan’s say “With knowledge, their are always entrepreneurs and projects