Ayman Hamza, co-founder and chief executive of Egypt-based agriculture technology start-up Khodar, has worked in the online industry since 2008, first for Maktoob and later for e-commerce company Souq, which was acquired by Amazon in 2017 for $650 million.
In 2020, he started investing in a few start-ups including Khodar, where he saw significant growth potential. He left Amazon the same year and became chief executive of the company.
Khodar was set up by Yasser Eidrous at the end of 2019 as a business-to-consumer company providing groceries to buyers.
After Mr Hamza joined the company, it transformed to become a business-to-business (B2B) company connecting farmers with various businesses – including supermarkets, restaurants, cafes, hotels, hospitals and catering companies – seeking to buy fresh fruits and vegetables.
“Competition is very high and we saw that we can add more value to the agricultural ecosystem, [thus] the launch in the B2B segment as there is a huge potential for growth," Mr Hamza says.
Currently, Khodar is an integrated agricultural system “that provides demand forecasts and fair price distribution channels to farmers. We also recycle waste into organic fertiliser to enhance soil efficiency and promote the sustainable practice in agriculture”, he says.
Khodar also launched a personal assistant service through WhatsApp to answer farmers' queries on price, transport and recycling, as well as help them to easily display their products and prices to potential customers.
The company has access to 10,000 farmers and is currently active in 16 cities in Egypt. It has two warehouses to distribute fruits and vegetables to different customers.
Mr Hamza is bullish about the growth of the business as Egypt’s population continues to increase, boosting demand for food and other agricultural products.
“There is a growing customer base in Egypt … right now we are 105 million in population and we expect to reach more than 110 million by 2025,” he says.
“Ten per cent of our budget is actually spent on food and the biggest percentage of this budget for vegetables and fruits.”
Egypt produces about 30 million tonnes of fruits and vegetables every year worth $64 billion and “there is a huge opportunity”, he says.
There is also a “huge volume of waste, which constitutes about 18 per cent of the total production, so we evolved our vision to become an integrated agricultural system with recycling of waste”.
The company is looking to export fruits and vegetables from Egypt to different countries in the Middle East.
Egypt exported about $3.3 billion worth of fruits and vegetables in 2021, he says, with agriculture a key driver of economic activity.
The North African country aims to increase agricultural production by 30 per cent between 2020 and 2050, and the sector’s share of exports to a quarter by 2050, from 17 per cent in 2020, according to a report from Oxford Economics, citing data from Egypt’s Ministry of Planning and Economic Development.
Last year, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi launched the “Egypt's Future” agricultural production project.
One of the nation's most significant projects, its main goals include increasing the number of opportunities in the sector, providing high-quality fresh produce at reasonable prices to citizens, closing the production-import gap and achieving food security and self-sufficiency in strategic commodities.
“Egypt is witnessing an agriculture revolution and we can play an important role in it,” Mr Hamza says.
Khodar's business has been growing two times every year since it was launched three years ago. In 2023, its revenue is expected to grow seven times when compared with last year.
The company is focused on expanding to Saudi Arabia, the Arab world’s largest economy, where it hopes to start operations by the end of the year, and is raising funds to achieve this.
“We want to be part of Saudi Vision 2030, which puts emphasis on agriculture development and boosting food security in the kingdom. It is actively investing in projects that promote agricultural sustainability. There are a lot of mega projects in Saudi Arabia to promote farming.”
The company aims to start operations in Riyadh before expanding to the kingdom's eastern region. It is focused on Makkah and Madinah “as there is a huge opportunity with hotels and restaurants”, he says.
Saudi Arabia aims to diversify its economy away from oil as part of the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative. It is focused on the development of a number of sectors in the kingdom, including food, agriculture, tourism and infrastructure.
Last year, Khodar raised $500,000 in an initial funding round that Saudi venture platform Revival Lab and other investors took part in.
Revival Lab is also leading the latest round of funding to help the company expand in the kingdom, he says, without disclosing the total amount of money it plans to raise.
Start-ups across the Middle East, Africa, Pakistan and Turkey raised $7.2 billion through 1,473 deals last year, despite macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, according to a report by data platform Magnitt.
Start-ups in Egypt raised $284 million in the first quarter of this year, the latest data compiled by the platform shows.
“At Khodar, we are proud to be part of this agricultural revolution and contribute to the development and vision of both Egypt and Saudi Arabia,” Mr Hamza says.
“By providing integrated agricultural services that encompass demand forecasts, raw materials, fair-price distribution channels and organic fertiliser production, we align our efforts with the goals of both countries.”
Q&A with Ayman Hamza, co-founder and chief executive of Khodar
What successful start-ups do you wish you could have started?
There are many start-ups in FinTech, as well as in e-commerce, grocery and other sectors, but when you talk about agriculture, there are fewer start-ups that specialise in this segment in Egypt and Saudi Arabia … maybe two or three or a maximum of five start-ups.
So, we don't have a benchmark locally that is doing the same thing as us but there are a lot of success stories in agriculture such as Ninjacart, one of the biggest fresh produce supply chains in India. They have a great success story but they are not providing an integrated system such as we have.
Company%20profile
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What new skills have you learnt in the process of starting the company?
Long-term planning. It is very important, especially in agriculture. It is a huge sector and there is an untapped opportunity. And also one needs to think about the big picture, not only the part of the picture such as supply or the forecast for demand or delivery. Simplifying the technology for the farmers is also very important.
What is your vision for the company?
We aim to play a critical role in enhancing agricultural efficiency and minimising waste and promoting environmentally friendly practices.
Who is your role model?
Ronaldo Mouchawar, the founder of Souq, which was later acquired by Amazon. I learnt a lot from him, especially in the early stage of a start-up – how you should take care of details of your operation and how you should hire and develop your team to become leaders. This is very important to manage a successful start-up.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
In ten years, we hope to become part of the agricultural revolution that will happen in our region, especially in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. I also hope to see a lot of start-ups supporting farmers and taking care of sustainability and increasing the efficiency of the agriculture system.
What is your advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?
Thinking big is very important and also trying to fill a real need for a large audience or segment is also crucial.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20OneOrder%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20March%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tamer%20Amer%20and%20Karim%20Maurice%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cairo%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E82%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Series%20A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RACE CARD
4pm Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m
5.10pm Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The five pillars of Islam
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
Name: Colm McLoughlin
Country: Galway, Ireland
Job: Executive vice chairman and chief executive of Dubai Duty Free
Favourite golf course: Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club
Favourite part of Dubai: Palm Jumeirah
More on animal trafficking
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Racecard
5pm: Al Maha Stables – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Emirates Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Emirates Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 1,600m
7pm: The President’s Cup – Group 1 (PA) Dh2,500,000 (T) 2,200m
7.30pm: The President’s Cup – Listed (TB) Dh380,000 (T) 1,400m
'Laal Kaptaan'
Director: Navdeep Singh
Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain
Rating: 2/5
ALL THE RESULTS
Bantamweight
Siyovush Gulmomdov (TJK) bt Rey Nacionales (PHI) by decision.
Lightweight
Alexandru Chitoran (ROU) bt Hussein Fakhir Abed (SYR) by submission.
Catch 74kg
Omar Hussein (JOR) bt Tohir Zhuraev (TJK) by decision.
Strawweight (Female)
Seo Ye-dam (KOR) bt Weronika Zygmunt (POL) by decision.
Featherweight
Kaan Ofli (TUR) bt Walid Laidi (ALG) by TKO.
Lightweight
Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) bt Leandro Martins (BRA) by TKO.
Welterweight
Ahmad Labban (LEB) bt Sofiane Benchohra (ALG) by TKO.
Bantamweight
Jaures Dea (CAM) v Nawras Abzakh (JOR) no contest.
Lightweight
Mohammed Yahya (UAE) bt Glen Ranillo (PHI) by TKO round 1.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) bt Aidan Aguilera (AUS) by TKO round 1.
Welterweight
Mounir Lazzez (TUN) bt Sasha Palatkinov (HKG) by TKO round 1.
Featherweight title bout
Romando Dy (PHI) v Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) by KO round 1.
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The bio
Favourite vegetable: Broccoli
Favourite food: Seafood
Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange
Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania
Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.
Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes
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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
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Brief scores:
Everton 0
Leicester City 1
Vardy 58'
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
The five pillars of Islam
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Company%20profile
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
Company profile
Name: Back to Games and Boardgame Space
Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)
Founder: Back to Games (Mr Azzam); Boardgame Space (Mr Azzam and Feras Al Bastaki)
Based: Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Industry: Back to Games (retail); Boardgame Space (wholesale and distribution)
Funding: Back to Games: self-funded by Mr Azzam with Dh1.3 million; Mr Azzam invested Dh250,000 in Boardgame Space
Growth: Back to Games: from 300 products in 2015 to 7,000 in 2019; Boardgame Space: from 34 games in 2017 to 3,500 in 2019
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
THE SPECS
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 523hp
Torque: 750Nm
Price: Dh469,000
SAUDI RESULTS
Team Team Pederson (-40), Team Kyriacou (-39), Team De Roey (-39), Team Mehmet (-37), Team Pace (-36), Team Dimmock (-33)
Individual E. Pederson (-14), S. Kyriacou (-12), A van Dam (-12), L. Galmes (-12), C. Hull (-9), E. Givens (-8),
G. Hall (-8), Ursula Wikstrom (-7), Johanna Gustavsson (-7)
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
The years Ramadan fell in May
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')
Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')
Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
Profile of Foodics
Founders: Ahmad AlZaini and Mosab AlOthmani
Based: Riyadh
Sector: Software
Employees: 150
Amount raised: $8m through seed and Series A - Series B raise ongoing
Funders: Raed Advanced Investment Co, Al-Riyadh Al Walid Investment Co, 500 Falcons, SWM Investment, AlShoaibah SPV, Faith Capital, Technology Investments Co, Savour Holding, Future Resources, Derayah Custody Co.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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