The MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) for the Pan Arab region has announced the winners of the second edition of Innovate for Refugees, a competition for the best tech-driven solutions addressing the challenges faced by refugees.

The winning teams, who received $20,000 each, were announced at the King Hussein Business Park in Amman during a ceremony that attracted more than 300 investors, business entrepreneurs, media representatives and public figures.

The winners:

Paper Airplane (United States of America), provides free, online language and skills instruction to people affected by conflict. The goal is to help these individuals learn languages and marketable skills for their pursuit of higher education and employment.

Tech for food (Iraq, Lebanon), provides digital training sessions targeting vulnerable communities to help them become employable in the international digital economy.

More than One perspective (Austria) is an advanced training program that offers various workshops, training and mentoring to prepare highly qualified refugees to enter the labour market.

Hope in sand and pipes (Lebanon) provides a transitional shelter for refugees using locally available material with minimum maintenance requirements and environmental considerations in the design to minimize the effects of the heat in the summer and cold in winter.

Akyas (Jordan) is a personal single-use biodegradable toilet with a sanitizer kit. The bag is made of biodegradable plastics and designed to provide maximum hygiene.

Prior to the final award ceremony, the 20 semi-finalists underwent a round of training sessions and presented their work to a jury that brought together a number of key investors and business people.

Hala Fadel, chair of the Board of MITEF Pan Arab, said: "We are extremely delighted with the success of the second edition of Innovate for Refugees. This shows how far the youth can achieve with only a little push and support to reach their full potential through their entrepreneurial ideas, innovation, and talent. In this context, we have succeeded in attracting several refugees to take part in this competition, and we are happy that three of the winning teams include refugees."

In its second edition, Innovate for Refugees received 1,800 applications. 17 judges from around the world participated in the judging process to determine the finalists in three different rounds. – TradeArabia News Service