Context:
Bahrain has a population of 1.4 million and GDP US$31.12 billion. While total unemployment rate is 1.3 %, unemployment among female youth (4.3%) is higher than that among male youth (0.5%). On the other hand, in 2014, the adjusted net enrolment rate for upper secondary education reached 69.3%, and more than 20% of Bahraini youth had volunteered in an organization.
iCamp, Innovation Camp, is a one day workshop, repeated several times per year. It motivates students to come up with the most innovative solution to a business challenge. It encourages them to use critical thinking, teamwork, communication and leadership skills and provides them with the opportunity to participate in brainteasers and fun activities. The students also engage with a business mentor who expands their horizons and guides their thinking towards an entrepreneurial future using exciting hands-on activities.
Implementation of programme/ initiative:
iCamp is a program by INJAZ Bahrain in collaboration with Alba, Al Salam Bank, Citi Bahrain, Bahrain Bayan School, Arabian Pearl Gulf Private School and University of Bahrain, and under the patronage of the Bahraini Ministry of Education
The goal of iCamp is to teach students about start-ups and entrepreneurship while enhancing their critical thinking, innovation, creativity teamwork, presentation and leadership skills. More specifically, iCamp aims at helping students to discover their own set of skills, to identify the building blocks of a business start-up, and to think out of the box; and at introducing them to basic skills of planning, market evaluation, financing, and business management.
Main challenges:
- N/A
Results achieved:
During 2015-2016, iCamp was conducted 13 times throughout the year. A total of 1016 students participated and benefited from this entrepreneurship program in collaboration with 49 corporate volunteers and 13 Bahraini entrepreneurs. In addition, INJAZ Bahrain managed to conduct the iCAMP workshop for more than 100 youth from the collaborating companies in December 2015.
Moving Forward:
- N/A
Replicability:
INJAZ Bahrain and Citi Foundation partnered to enhance youth entrepreneurship and financial literacy by conducting iCamp in eight countries in the MENA region in an attempt to increase the economic growth of the region. As a result, iCamp program is expected to reach an additional 9620 Arab youth, out of which 900 are from Bahrain.
References:
AHDR 2016
World Bank, 2016
International Labor Organization, 2016
http://injazbh.org/annualreport/AnnualReport-2015-2016.pdf
http://injazbh.org/brochure/InnovationCamp.pdf
Project Details
Date: October 10, 2017