Saudi Arabian edtech platform Aanaab led venture capital fundraising activity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region this week, as it secured growth capital to scale its business. It was followed by early-stage funding rounds raised by Egyptian digital freight forwarding platform Nowlun, Moroccan mobility startup Enakl and UAE-based gametech startup Playgama.
Last month, UAE-based eyewear retailer Eyewa had pushed up the overall MENA funding activity, as it raised $100 million in a Series C round, led by General Atlantic amid its plans to open a new production facility in Riyadh.
Aanaab
Saudi Arabia-based teachers-focused edtech platform Aanaab raised $7 million in a Series A funding round from Dallah Investment Holding to expand its operations.
Founded in 2019 by Munira Jamjoom, Naila Al-Khalawi, and Fouad Al-Farhan, Aanaab is a digital training platform that offers K–12 teachers and educators a range of courses, licensing, and qualifications, predominantly in Arabic, to advance their professional development.
The startup aims to use the funding towards scaling its operations and expanding the range of training programmes offered to new sectors. It also aims to upgrade its technological infrastructure through AI. Aanaab currently has over 200,000 teachers and about 250 schools enrolled on its platform, across 10 countries in the MENA region. The latest round of funding comes a year and a half after it raised capital from US-based edtech VC Rethink Education.
Egypt-based digital freight forwarding platform Nowlun secured $1.7 million in seed funding, led by Nama Ventures to accelerate its expansion plans. The round also saw participation from early-stage venture capital firm A15, Sanabil 500 Global and other angel investors.
Founded in 2021 by Moataz Khamis, Mahmoud Khaled, and Ahmed Emara, Nowlun integrates with major shipping lines, offering businesses real-time pricing and visibility into cargo movements. The latest investment will facilitate Nowlun's expansion plans and the further development of its platform.
Morocco-based mobility startup Enakl has secured $1.4 million pre-Seed funding led by Catalyst Fund to propel growth. Other investors that participated in the round include Renew Capital, Digital Africa, and Station F, besides 15 business angels.
Founded in 2023 by Samir Bennani, Charles Pommarede, and later joined by Ahmed Omrane, Enakl is an urban mobility startup that provides sustainable, collective transport solutions. The funding will facilitate its expansion to other African cities and further its tech development initiatives
Playgama
Gametech startup Playgama raised $3 million from investors including The Open Platform and s16vc to scale the business. The round also saw participation from FJ Labs, The Games Fund, TON Ventures, and Kirill Eves, the CEO and founder of Unlimit.
Founded in 2023 in the UAE by Dmitry Kachmar, Playgama is an HTML5 games portal offering games for all ages. It aims to utilize the funding to introduce advanced analytics and fintech solutions, besides introducing improvements on the platform.
