'Do the opposite of what you're told': Teen entrepreneurs from the Arab region on their early success

While there aren’t many, when a teenager launches a successful entrepreneurial project before earning their high school diploma or they’re eligible to vote, it’s sure to make a splash. British-Australian high school student Nick D’Aloisio recently made ripples in the media when he sold his app Summly in 2013 to Yahoo! for a reported $30 million USD.

But what about wunderkind from the MENA region? Due to many factors, including relatively low rates of internet connectivity, limited access to international funding sources, few examples of successful entrepreneurs (among other challenges), it can be argued that teens in our region have less opportunity to strike it rich at a young age than their peers elsewhere in the world.

But the following three entrepreneurs – Jihad Kawas, Abdallah Absi, and Youcef Es-skouri – prove that it can be done, even in the face of hardship. We caught up with them to understand what has motivated them to establish their companies instead of playing video games or hanging out at the mall with their friends. We particularly asked them about tips for teenagers who would like to start their own startups. Spoiler: these tips are good for all ages.

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‘Do the opposite of what you’re told’: Teen entrepreneurs from the Arab region on their early success