The Marrakech-Safi Regional Investment Center, Emerging Business Factory and the Near East Foundation announce the results of the first edition of the Water Show Hackathon on innovation in the water sector in response to water stress in Morocco. The 10 winning start-ups will receive a grant of 500,000 Moroccan dirhams (nearly 46,500 euros) and technical support.
The winners of the 2022 edition of the Hackathon Water Show are known since October 14, 2022. They are 10 Moroccan start-ups rewarded for their projects related to water preservation in the Marrakech-Safi region of Morocco. According to Emerging Business Factory (EBF), one of the organizers of the annual competition, the current water deficit in this region of the kingdom is about 564 million m3 per year, leading to an imbalance between supply and demand. Emerging Business Factory supports this initiative with the Regional Investment Center of Marrakech-Safi and the Near East Foundation.
The winners of the first edition of the Hackathon Water Show, which focuses on innovation for water conservation, will share a start-up grant of 500,000 Moroccan dirhams (about 46,500 euros) as part of an acceleration program, as well as additional funding from the Hackathon partners.
Reclaiming treated wastewater
The young companies will also benefit from a three-month incubation program, provided by the Emerging Business Factory incubator. Of the 10 winning start-ups at the end of the Hackathon Water Show, held from October 12 to 14, 2022, three received a special mention from the jury as well as additional prizes for innovations in water treatment. These are the start-ups Watech, Phycotech and SGW.
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In response to water stress, Watech has developed an eco-biofilter for the treatment of domestic wastewater and grey water. For its part, the start-up Phycotech proposes a technique called “Phycoremediation” based on the use of micro-algae as a means of water purification to improve the quality of pre-treated water for irrigation. In the Marrakech-Safi region, the agricultural sector consumes more than 80% of available water resources. SGW’s solution is called “Shrimp Green Water”. It is an industrial product used for water filtration. In the Cherifian Kingdom, the government is also focusing on the desalination of sea water to mitigate the effects of water stress.
Inès Magoum
