FROM THE MIDDLE EAST: Nafez Dakkak gives us a peek in Wamda (a combination news site, investment fund and incubator) at some of the edtech startups blooming in the Middle East. There's Ketaaby and Little Thinking Minds working on bringing Arabic literacy to children. Emuallim.com boasts the "world's first Arab region and Arab student-focused online tutoring services" serving an estimated 9 million students. Codely aims to provide a "programming playground" for kids. Sure, these may look and sound familiar to what we've seen here in the States. But what's interesting are the different obstacles these edupreneurs face. Online payment gateways are still relatively untested, and traditional education styles may be even more entrenched. Finally, investors are either scarce or skeptical regarding the ed space--one startup reportedly had to launch their platform in English instead of Arabic in order to secure funds.
