The MIT Arab Business Plan Competition looks like a good initiative:
The MIT Arab Business Plan Competition is the first of its kind in the Arab world. The Competition is designed to encourage all entrepreneurs in the region to start their own company and, ultimately, create a nest of leading firms in the Arab world. It also brings to the Arab world all the MIT expertise in entrepreneurship and in running such competitions.
The deadline for submitting the applications is Thursday, January 8, 2009 at 23:59, Beirut time.
The Competition is open to all Arab nationals with a business idea. The only requirement is to be part of a team. You cannot enter the Competition as one person. A team should comprise a minimum of 3 individuals and at least 2 members of the team should be citizens of the Arab world. The business concept should also be implemented in a country within the Arab world.