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Ranya Bakr

About

Ranya Bakr serves as Research Fellow at IRIS, where she writes on non-oil economic sectors in Iraq and the region. She is the Country Manager for Viamo – Iraq, she is an Iraqi entrepreneurship and innovation professional with a master’s degree in Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship from Bournemouth University. She is a former Chevening Scholar and also holds a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering. Ranya worked for both Strengthening the Participation of Women in the Rehabilitation and Peace Process Project in Iraq and the Private Sector Development programmes of GIZ Iraq as Advisor for Entrepreneurial & Economic Empowerment and as a Start-up Promotion and Policy Development Advisor where co-led a nationwide start-up competition named INTILAQ. Prior to that, Ranya co-founded a co-working space for architects in Baghdad (STOREY) and was a Stakeholder Advisor and a management team member of the Innovation for Development project by UNDP Iraq. Ranya has obtained international recognition by speaking as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week in Baghdad, as well as in the UK in 2019 and 2020. She is a bronze award winner in the category of Urban Sustainability in UNLEASH in Denmark, and a fellow and coach of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research in Japan.