Riyadh, Dubai, and Kuwait were named top three cities in MENA for startups

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is proving a popular choice for new start-ups in 2022, according to a Sortlist SME guide for UK and MENA. Startups across MENA raised US$323.7 million across 66 deals in June alone this year, with US investors the most active foreign investors.

Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) proved to be the best MENA city for start-ups. Its average broadband speeds of 94.64 Mbps are higher than most, and literacy rates are standing at 95 percent. Riyadh also has one of the highest happiness ratings in MENA with 6.49/10 and an electricity cost of just 4.2 p/kWh.

Dubai (UAE) is in second place has an average internet download speed of 189.07 Mbps, larger than any city in MENA on this list. Perfect for hybrid working and working with international clients and employees, fast internet boosts efficiency, specially in early stages of a business.

Surprisingly, in third place was Kuwait. The city has an exceptional literacy rate of 96 percent and a very low electricity price of just 2.5 p/kWh. Pairing this with a very decent broadband speed of 149.37 Mbps suggests that Kuwait offers the perfect environment for a budding business, however, the office rent is a little high at £333.66 per month.

Finishing off the top 10 were Amman (Jordan), Istanbul (Turkey), Manama (Bahrain), Casablanca (Morocco), Cairo (Egypt), Baghdad (Iraq) and Beirut (Lebanon).

The research carried out by Sortlist analysed multiple factors including success rates, average costs of office rental, electric prices, the population with the most qualifications and broadband speed, to identify top MENA cities where a new business has the highest chance of success.