Roland Berger and Start-Up Nation Central partner to advance commercial opportunities for innovation in the GCC Region

Leading consulting firm Roland Berger will collaborate with Tel Aviv-based Start-Up Nation Central on a series of strategic initiatives to promote business agreements between Israeli companies and GCC-based government and commercial entities

Tel Aviv/Munich, January 2022: Leading international consulting firm Roland Berger is partnering with Start-Up Nation Central, the independent non-profit organization connecting global corporations, investors, and governments to the Israeli tech innovation ecosystem. Together, the two organizations will advance commercial opportunities for Israeli technological innovation companies interested in operating within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Based on a recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Roland Berger will collaborate with Tel Aviv-based Start-Up Nation Central on a series of strategic initiatives. The parties will also carry out joint research and analysis, marketing, and promotional activities. The cooperation is expected to help fulfill the promise of the Abraham Accords that were signed 15 months ago and to further deepen the ties between the signatory states.

Start-Up Nation Central has already taken substantial steps to build bridges between the member states' innovation ecosystems. In December 2020, it officially launched the UAE-IL Tech Zone, an exclusive platform aimed at bridging technological, entrepreneurial, business, venture capital, and government collaborations between the UAE and Israel. The growing community, already connecting more than 2,000 business, innovation, and technology leaders from both countries, is gradually evolving to become a GCC regional community. Start-Up Nation Central recently initiated the UAE-Israel Business Forum with UAE Ambassador to Israel H.E. Mohamed Al Khaja to further promote the countries’ business-to-business ties in an effort to create a joint regional hub of entrepreneurship.

In July, Start-Up Nation Central signed an agreement with The UAE Minister of State for Food and Water Security, to set up a framework for addressing shared food and water security challenges. Under the terms of the framework, Start-Up Nation Central will scout and map Israeli innovative solutions and the Minister will connect them with the relevant Emirati companies and government initiatives that can benefit from these solutions.

Together, Start-Up Nation Central and Roland Berger are now looking forward to further driving innovation and cross-national cooperation in the Middle East.

Stefan Schaible, Global Managing Partner of Roland Berger: "At Roland Berger, we are deeply committed to entrepreneurship, which is one of our firm's fundamental values. We are actively exploring unconventional ideas, taking risks, and blazing new trails, but are also willing to assume responsibility. Therefore, we are excited to collaborate with Start-Up Nation Central, one of the most developed global start-up ecosystem facilitators. As partners we will craft innovative and sustainable solutions for clients from the private and public sectors alike."

Jeremie Kletzkine, Start-Up Nation Central VP Business Development: "The region is transforming quickly. As a leading one-stop gateway to Israeli innovation, it is more than natural for Start-Up Nation Central to collaborate with a world-class organization such as Roland Berger, which understands and advises the UAE and GCC government and business leadership. We aim to leverage the complementary characteristics of the UAE and Israeli tech industries to establish a robust Middle East innovation hub that will create an innovation powerhouse to address regional and global challenges. As the leading business strategy consulting firm in the GCC, Roland Berger is the best possible partner for this mission."