In 2018, to the applause of parliamentarians and young entrepreneurs, the “start-up-Act” was born, with its share of promises and hopes. A law which finally put the first milestones of a relatively advantageous legal framework for start-ups. Four years later, some are disillusioned, others are managing to do well, some have succeeded in raising impressive funds. But in the opinion of those with whom we were able to discuss, it is time to rethink the State’s strategy in terms of support for these entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs, who are people who “jump off a cliff and assemble the plane during the fall”, to use the definition of the American serial entrepreneur Reid Hoffman.
Reputed to be one of the hubs of digital innovation in Tunisia, “The Dot” space had the wonderful idea of bringing together, recently, the media and a fine line-up of young startuppers, to discuss their careers, main challenges they face and to reflect, with the media in particular, on how to develop an ecosystem that is not always very viable.
Democratizing water recycling
The common point between the four speakers, all founders or co-founders of start-ups, is undoubtedly the self-sacrifice they show despite the difficulties. Like the co-founder and director of the start-up “Dracoss”, Amen Allah Souli, whose overflowing energy is almost insolent. His project, falling within the framework of “Greentech”, is in tune with the times. At a time when the world in general and Tunisia in particular are on the brink of real “water distress”, and when overconsumption of water reflects a surreal unconsciousness, the start-up offers professionals, in particular restaurateurs and hoteliers, to drastically reduce their water consumption. The idea, which is both simple and innovative, consists in proposing a small recycling device, which is perfectly suited to small structures. Quickly, this technique will not only make it possible to substantially reduce the bill, but also to monitor water consumption in real time.
“Unfortunately, the Tunisian market being relatively narrow, we are working on developing our offer in the United States and particularly in California where we think it is possible to grow,” explains Amen Allah Souli.
“Zero hassle, zero talk”
Alaâ Chaïbi, co-founder of the start-up “Birou”, thinks he can adapt very well to the Tunisian market despite the obstacles. Its promise, to make life easier for VSEs and MSEs by dusting off their management methods. In concrete terms, observation shows that more than 80% of company bankruptcies are essentially due to poor management. “Poor invoicing, poor cash management, poor cash flow assessment, can easily precipitate a company into an inextricable financial abyss, which ultimately leads to bankruptcy,” says Alaâ Chaïbi, whose start-up up has enabled hundreds of companies to get their heads above water. By introducing artificial intelligence and data analysis in commercial and financial management, “Birou” leaves no room for chance. Recently, thanks to the start-up’s solutions, an SME managed to save between 15,000 and 20,000 dinars in just 6 months. In total, more than 2,000 companies of different sizes have opted for the “Birou” solution.
“Sghartoon” or how to overcome difficulties learning
The “Sghartoon” platform, co-founded by Hidayet Ayadi, is completely free for parents. The latter provides users with diagnostic and guidance tools for children aged 5 to 10 with learning disabilities. Dyslexia, attention disorders and other associated disorders are identified by the platform and parents are then referred to professionals who can help these children cope. Thanks to digital work with professionals, “Sghartoon” offers interactive and personalized games, specially designed to support children with learning disabilities.
“If there’s one thing I’m proud of, it’s certainly seeing children improve their grades considerably in school, or seeing a little girl suffering from a rare disease, regain a taste for life and create, for the first time in years, interactions with its environment,” says Hidayet Ayadi.
But just like “Dracoss”, the start-up “Sghartoon” feels cramped in the local market. Indeed, whether with the therapists or with the parents, she had to face cultural barriers and difficult clichés to twist. “Parents are reluctant to recognize their children’s disease, and professionals fear that the application will replace them, whereas this fear is totally unfounded since we are really only a link between them and the patients” , summarizes the co-founder of the start-up.
To escape these obstacles while waiting for better days, “Sghartoon” is heading for the Gulf countries, which seem more open to this type of initiative. In Saudi Arabia, it is neither more nor less than the Ministry of Social Affairs which is the main client of the start-up.
Still, in Tunisia, officials from the Ministry of National Education are convinced that the current system is unfavorable to children with learning difficulties. In the near future, “Sghartoon” hopes to establish fruitful cooperation in this field.
Sport to fight absenteeism in the workplace
In recent years, business leaders and human resources managers have become aware of the importance of well-being at work. The correlation between “sick leave”, absenteeism and lack of sporting activities, for example, no longer needs to be demonstrated. Only then, managers do not always know how to go regarding encouraging their employees to play sports. The “Wemovese” start-up presents a support tool for companies that make the well-being of their employees a priority. Co-founded in 2021 by Meriam Sellami, “Wemove” currently works with more than twenty companies, which employ more than 2,000 people. For one of them, the results are final. “When we started working with a company of 250 employees, only 5 did sport regularly, says Meriam Sellami. Today, there are 110 of them who practice sport diligently”.
So how does it actually work? “Wemove” makes it possible to find the offer that corresponds to each and everyone according to “needs and desires”. In fact, “Wemove” does not have sports halls, but it helps to find the right sports program at preferential rates.
“We are a fully automated solution for the allocation, management and monitoring of sports benefits granted to employees”, explains Meriam Sellami. Thanks to a control of the dedicated budget, without breaking the bank, the employees of a company can subscribe to the offer that suits them.
4 years later, time to take stock
In 2018, to the applause of parliamentarians and young entrepreneurs, the “Start-up-Act” was born, with its share of promises and hopes. A law which finally put the first milestones of a relatively advantageous legal framework for start-ups. Four years later, some are disillusioned, others are managing to do well, some have succeeded in raising impressive funds. But in the opinion of those with whom we were able to discuss, it is time to rethink the State’s strategy in terms of support for these entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs, who are people who “jump off a cliff and assemble the plane during the fall”, to use the definition of the American serial entrepreneur Reid Hoffman.