Ramallah – United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah attended the Hi-Tech Hub event at the Movenpick Hotel in Ramallah on Tuesday evening, where young Palestinian entrepreneurs pitched business ideas. The competition, announced in August, called for solutions for the tourism and gaming sectors. Eight startups, founded in response to the competition, presented their prototype solutions to a panel of judges who evaluated their proposals.

Emphasizing that entrepreneurship is of paramount importance to the Palestinian economy and to Palestinian society; Dr. Shah expressed USAID’s strong support for entrepreneurial businesses and individuals. “USAID strives to provide assistance for young entrepreneurs to develop ideas, assistance that is adaptable, responsive and innovative,” he told the crowd of entrepreneurs. Dr. Shah continued, “We cannot underestimate the ambition and creativity demonstrated by Palestinian entrepreneurs and the contribution their businesses make to the lives of Palestinian people.” USAID projects increase the availability of investment capital; provide targeted technical assistance and access to improved technologies and management skills; and eliminate regulatory constraints by developing partnerships between the private sector and the Palestinian Authority. USAID works to create a robust information technology sector in the West Bank that has a sustainable pipeline of startups working in local and regional markets. To date USAID has organized three Hi-Tech Hub events, in order to celebrate young entrepreneurs and connect them with investors.

The United States is the leading provider of bilateral development assistance to the Palestinians, having provided $4.5 billion since 1994 for programs in the areas of democracy and governance; education; health and humanitarian assistance; private enterprise; and water resources and infrastructure.

For more information on U.S. assistance, please contact: Sahar Kalifa at wbgpro@usaid.gov or call 03-511-4845.