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Amidst the vicious conflicts, wars, and disarray that plague the Syrian people. Brave men and women defiantly stand in face of the chaos, and while these people bring hope and promise for a better future for Syria. They are not on the war lines defending their country. What they do is work day and night in an attempt to build profitable companies.

Jusoor is an NGO that “was watching the potential of youth being wasted, their opportunities being shut down by unlucky circumstances and an environment that doesn’t encourage it.” as we said a couple of months ago. The Jusoor Entrepreneurship Competition started with a series of online mentorship sessions hosting active and successful Arab entrepreneurs, which inspired the startups to compete. Out of these 10 startup finalists, 3 winners will be selected during Jusoor’s Annual Global Conference in Los Angeles on February 21st 2015. Asfari Foundation will be providing the financial prizes that will fund their projects, and sponsor the startups below to enroll in the Oasis500 bootcamp.

With their promo video campaigns viewed by the thousands since they were released to the public in Mid-January, and having talked to Jusoor’s founders Dania Ismail and we are happy to have gotten a glimpse at what some of the best minds in Syria are up to - in no particular order:

1.      Rootal: A back-end service provider for Internet of Things developers focusing on Geolocation, for managing and interacting with a large number of devices. Rootal's APIs allow developers to communicate with these devices based on various parameters. They have been featured in Forbes and Wamda, and have been ranked among the 15 top tech business plans in the Arab World by the Arab Science and Technology Foundation.

2.      Yahala Istanbul: One of the most-read Arabic online portals about Istanbul on the web. It  provides reliable & unique information about Istanbul city’s lifestyle & touristic information, targeting wide internet Arabic speaking audience. Readers are genuinely gathering info about Istanbul, whether in preparation for an upcoming trip or while residing in Istanbul. The website offers partners the opportunity to reach a targeted, highly engaged audience with relevant products they might buy.

3.      Project Robox: Robox is a versatile robot that allows users to build advanced functionality with ease, using a visual IDE. Robox is aimed at students and engineers in software, computer, and mechanical, making it easier for them to build robots that can do plenty without a writing a line of code.

4.      Instant Overseas Services: IOS depends on building a huge relations network supported by a large database, that could be used to instantly link Arabian investors and firms, to machines, real estate, suppliers, tourism services, and the employment market. They also offer consulting, marketing research, PR campaigns, and feasibility analysis to any firm operating within Istanbul.

5.      Afkar Incubator: A platform is geared to enable entrepreneurs in Syria in general and in Hama in particular to provide the necessary support to various needs that can help turn ideas into reality, from concept stage to implementation. The structure  is based on three integrated platforms, a news website focused on entrepreneurship, a professional educational platform, and a social business incubator for financing of small projects. Their approach is to influence youth and college graduates to the notion that a getting a job might not be their best option, and instead spread the culture of establishing small private companies based on new ideas outside the traditional market to drive the local economy.

6.      Bidayaty:A social entrepreneurship project based in Beirut that aims to empower the interrelations of Syrian youth and enhance their skills in order to prepare them in becoming a part of an active, civil society that supports the rebuilding of Syria. It combines both social and educational responsibilities through various means of activities and is based in Beirut.

7.      Sfkat:A participatory online platform, offering an easy way for purchases between companies, shops and customers by conducting transactions through classifieds with the possibility of ranking products and services. They wish to open channels of communication and discussion between the owners of products and their customer base, enabling companies to display and market their products. The project focuses on providing a tool for individuals and owners of handicrafts and small businesses to market their offerings and deliver them to the largest number of people interested in buying them.

8.      صحتك بجيبتك : A project that provides an electronic medical card accessible on the web and on mobile between patients and healthcare facilities, allowing them to manage their health records in an effective and useful way, and gives medical staff and doctors easier access to pathological records and electronic images and other health records of patients, thus eliminating loss, damage and redundancy of information, which makes for a more efficient process and a possible life-saver in case of emergencies.

9.      Nobelchemist: The project aims to employ environmentally friendly technology and materials for the manufacture of a safe low-cost water sterilizing product available to everyone, everywhere. Nobelchemist also aims to spread awareness against the use of chlorine compounds antiseptic water products because of the dangers that threaten people’s health and the environment.

10.   Khatwa Network: an initiative to support Syrian youth in different areas of Egypt, specifically in the field of education.

These ten finalists will move forward to the third phase of the competition where they will be evaluated by a panel of established entrepreneurs, mentors, investment managers and venture capitalists including:

• Samih Toukan, CEO of Jabbar Group and founder of Maktoob.com

• Rama Chakaki, co-founder of Baraka Ventures and Barakabits

• Ali Diab, co-founder and CEO of Collective Health

• Ronaldo Mouchawar, co-founder and CEO of Souq.com

• Karim Samakie, Investment Manager at Oasis500

You can watch the entrepreneurial sessions here.