The Embassy of Israel and the Chamber of Commerce of Women announced the winner of the Women Innovative Start-Up Contest, a joint project launched months ago. Erblina Shehu, with her project "Kungul App," is the first prize winner among the 5 finalists, selected by the evening's final jury. Erblina is fortunate to experience a unique opportunity, a visit to Israel to bring her idea to life. This project emerged as a joint initiative of two institutions, driven by the friendship and desire of Mrs. Galit Pelag, the Ambassador of Israel to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the founders of the Chamber. They wanted to combine the best of Israel's experience with the realization of concrete start-up projects in Albania.
After launching the call in June, more than 20 applications were received, and the jury of the project's first phase selected five finalists based on defined criteria. The first-phase jury was composed of Mrs. Alida Kondi, the Director of the Center for Promoting Competitiveness, Mrs. Nuriona Sokoli, a partner and legal auditor at Kreston Albania shpk, and Mr. Klajdi Heta, the Head of the Office of Economy and Trade at the Embassy of Israel in Tirana. Each of the five finalists was mentored throughout July and August by five mentors, experts in their respective fields: Mr. Gerion Treska, Mr. Julian Demeti, Mrs. Ana Petani, Mrs. Alida Kondi, and Mrs. Nuriona Sokoli.
In the final evening, under a carefully organized event, attended by embassies, banks, universities, vocational schools, international organizations, the Municipality of Tirana, the Ministry, business representatives, NGOs, and the Chamber of Commerce, it was reaffirmed that these two institutions support their projects and have a high interest in topics related to innovation and entrepreneurship for women and girls.
The opening panel, consisting of Mrs. Klodiana Ajazi, Mrs. Galit Pelag, and Mr. Eduart Shalësi, served not only for welcoming but also for addressing some challenges and needs. Mrs. Ajazi, one of the founders of the Chamber of Commerce of Women and an entrepreneur for companies "Inovess Construction" and "Novus Advertising," highlighted the ongoing projects that the Chamber has undertaken to develop and improve the business environment for women and girls in Albania. She stressed the importance of practical inclusion of entrepreneurship and innovation education in high school and university curricula. Mrs. Ajazi also called on all ecosystem actors to strengthen their collaboration to ensure that this ecosystem, even in its early stages, can yield results.
Furthermore, Mrs. Ajazi, reflecting on her work at the Chamber of Commerce of Women over the years, emphasized the challenge of including more women and girls from other cities in Albania in the innovation and start-up ecosystem, citing the lack of support and information for them.
Mrs. Galit Peleg, the Ambassador of Israel in Albania, the initiator and supporter of this project, stated, "What inspires me about the audience in this room is that we have brave women who don't wait for something good to happen to them but take action and bring about change with their own hands! Why do I believe that women have the chance to become better entrepreneurs? Because we come with less ego! Because we are willing to work hard, our pain threshold is higher! Because we have the drive to show that we can succeed at least as well as men! Because we can multitask."
Mr. Eduard Shalsi, Chairman of the Committee on Economy and Finance, highlighted the competition's interesting nature, involving ambitious and determined business ideas from women and girls, organized by the Embassy of Israel in Albania and the Chamber of Commerce of Women.
The jury for the final night was different from the first phase and consisted of three experienced women in entrepreneurship and the innovation ecosystem: Mrs. Antonela Hako, Chair of the Chamber of Commerce of Women and founder of Hako shpk, Mrs. Etleva Leskaj, Associate Professor, Head of the Management Department at the Faculty of Economics, and Mrs. Florensa Haxhi, Director of Business Development at the Albanian Corporation of Investments (AIC) and an innovation consultant at the Ministry of Defense.
At the close of the event, Mrs. Hako delivered the good news that this project will continue in the coming year, and the three winners will be followed by both institutions to realize their ideas, find financing opportunities, and serve as a good inspiration for the younger generation.
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