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Orange Middle East and Africa (OMEA) held an award ceremony for the 3rd International Orange Summer Challenge (OSC) this February, awarding three innovative startups developed by young entrepreneurs from Africa and the Middle East.

As a flagship program of the Orange Digital Centers, the Orange Summer Challenge is an international competition that supports young talents each year in turning their ideas into technology-based solutions with strong social and environmental impact.

The program highlights Orange Jordan’s unwavering commitment to empowering youth, enhancing their digital skills, expanding their employment opportunities, and offering the necessary expertise aligned with the labor market. This is facilitated through the Orange Digital Center (ODC) programs, including the Innovation Hub, Fabrication Lab, Coding School, and BIG by Orange, which contribute to providing expert mentorship and collaborative teamwork within a supportive environment, in line with the company's approach to supporting innovation and connectingentrepreneurial projects with the Jordanian economy.

For the 2025 edition, 369 young innovators from 14 countries benefited from three months of intensive support provided by OrangeMEA teams and Orange Digital Centers through training, mentoring, coaching and access to technological expertise. With the support of key partners, Amazon Web Services, Meta, UNDP, The HashgraphAssociation, and Dar Blockchain, 56 startup projects were developed under the “Startup4Good” theme, addressing key sectors such as environment, health, education and agriculture.

This reflects Orange Group’s determination to position the Orange Digital Centers as open and inclusive innovation platforms. Deputy CEO and Chief Operations Officer of Orange Middle East and Africa, Ben Cheick Haidara, stated that for more than 16 years, Orange Summer Challenge has been a true catalyst for talent and innovation. More than competition, this program enables young entrepreneurs to develop technology-based solutions, notably leveraging artificial intelligence, to address societal and environmental challenges in a very concrete way. Through the Orange Digital Centers, Orange is firmly committed to supporting youth and fostering high-impact innovation across Africa and the Middle East.

The first place was awarded to SafeGuard from Jordan, receiving a grant of €22,000 to enable expanding its positive impact and continue offering its innovative solutions to society and the environment. The project offers smart safety devices for worksites, with features likelive monitoring and comprehensive reporting, ensuring reinforced occupational safety, effectively reduces risks, and maintain safer and more efficient work environments.