Majid Al Futtaim, one of Dubai's biggest private sector companies and the Middle East's largest mall operator, is focusing on ClimateTech in the latest edition of its start-up accelerator programme ahead of the Cop28 conference in the UAE, a top executive said on Wednesday.
The conglomerate aims to support companies developing technological solutions to climate change issues through its Launchpad programme in line with the government's sustainability initiatives, Joe Abi Akl, chief corporate development officer of Majid Al Futtaim, told The National.
Launchpad, which is in its second year and is in partnership with digital ecosystem builder AstroLabs and Microsoft, will provide monetary incentives, mentorship, networking opportunities and other benefits to winning start-ups and small and medium enterprises.
“Sustainability has been one of our key priorities … and what the UAE is doing today by focusing and doubling down on sustainability by hosting Cop28 is another milestone. That's why we picked ClimateTech as one of the priorities of the launch pad,” Mr Abi Akl said.
“It ties quite well with what the government is doing.”
Majid Al Futtaim, which owns and operates Mall of the Emirates and the City Centre chain of malls, is “in continuous discussions with government and semi-government entities to see how we can support [start-ups] on that journey,” he added.
The Cop28 climate change conference is scheduled to be held in Dubai from November 30 to December 12 and is expected to be the most inclusive yet. Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, is the Cop28 President-designate.
The ultimate goal of Majid Al Futtaim's programme is to introduce start-ups to “other players and partners in the region because we believe they can help and in the sustainability transformation that the country is going through”, Mr Abi Akl said.
Developing start-ups’ contribution to the economy will help achieve the target of doubling the UAE's gross domestic product by 2031, Abdulla bin Touq, UAE's Minister of Economy, said this month.
Last year, the Ministry of Economy unveiled its updated Entrepreneurial Nation programme, which seeks to develop more than 8,000 SMEs and start-ups by 2030.
The Emirates also aims to be home to 20 unicorns – start-ups with a valuation of $1 billion and above – by 2031, double the number initially planned.
In December, the UAE launched Future 100, a programme aimed at supporting and honouring the top 100 start-ups that are expected to have a significant impact on the country's economy.
“There's no debating the importance of SMEs to the economy. The question becomes: how do you help these SMEs grow,” Mr Abi Akl said.
“By helping them grow, we don't look at this as competition; we help them grow, then grow the economy – not only the economy of the UAE, but the region we operate in.”
The popularity of Majid Al Futtaim's Launchpad has spread globally, with the company receiving applications from Asia, Africa, Europe, the US and wider Middle East, setting the stage for the programme's expansion, he said.
“We've done some experimentation in Egypt, and the plan is to roll it out across all markets [the company operates in] … it all depends on the opportunities when they come.”
In last year's inaugural edition, Launchpad received more than 200 applications, with 14 winners selected. This year, seven or eight winners are expected. While this is a smaller number, it will enable Majid Al Futtaim to focus on giving them “more in terms of support, guidance, engagements and partnerships”.
The new winners will join the previous batch at Launchpad X, a collaborative commercial store for entrepreneurs that aims to boost start-ups by connecting them with global market opportunities.
“We're not trying to compete with other accelerators or to replace them. We want to partner with them and give these start-ups access to an existing ecosystem,” Mr Abi Akl said.
