Saudi VC Sukna, Unifonic launches entrepreneurship program

About 30 participants will be chosen to join the program, which will be delivered in three phases. (Shutterstock)

• The 14-week program, called Unifonic X, will provide mentorship to aspiring entrepreneurs and early-stage ventures to further develop their business concepts

DUBAI: Saudi venture capital firm Sukna has partnered with Dubai-based Unifonic to host an entrepreneurship program in the Kingdom, the pair announced in a statement.
The 14-week program, called Unifonic X, will provide mentorship to aspiring entrepreneurs and early-stage ventures to further develop their business concepts, as Saudi Arabia ramps up investment in its startup ecosystem.
About 30 participants will be chosen to join the program, which will be delivered in three phases. They will be teamed up to focus on 10 venture ideas.
The teams will then present their ideas to prospective partners, angel and institutional investors.
“Unifonic and Sukna have put together an impressive consortium of partners to help the founders succeed and graduate successful investible ventures,” Fares Bardeesi, founder of Sukna, said.
“Founders with or without ideas joining this program will go through a structured venture building program while having access to a network of market experts, mentors and advisers thus significantly improving their chances of success,” he added.
Unifonic X is modeled after the Global Innovation Catalyst Innovation Execution program, and gives participants access to Silicon Valley experiences and resources from top universities, the company claimed.
“By launching ‘Unifonic X’, we connect this generation of entrepreneurship with the needed skills and resources to lead and excel,” Saudi deputy minister for future jobs and entrepreneurship, Ahmed Altheneyan, said.
“We are doubling down our investment in emerging technologies and entrepreneurship through various incentives and an integrated ecosystem,” he added.