KADEM support for women who say, ‘I have an idea’

 

KADEM Board of Trustees Chair Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar: ‘Supporting women’s entrepreneurship is not merely a development goal, but also a fundamental condition for social justice and sustainable prosperity.’

The winners of the Women in Innovation Project, run by the Women and Democracy Foundation (KADEM), which defends the right of all women to a safe, dignified and just life, have been announced. The winners received a total of £1.5 million in prize money.

 

This year’s 9th ‘Women in Innovation Project’ Entrepreneurship Camp and Awards Ceremony was attended by Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül, KADEM Board of Trustees Chair Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar, KADEM Board of Directors Chair Av. Dr. Canan Sarı, along with numerous guests, mentors and entrepreneurs.

At the Women in Innovation Project Entrepreneurship Camp, entrepreneurs have the opportunity to work with mentors, investors, industrialists and the KADEM project team; they participate in Entrepreneur-Investor Meetings, development and motivation meetings. KADEM, which provides sustainable education and mentoring support to women entrepreneurs across Turkey, also encourages women entrepreneurs to enter new markets.

Speaking at the opening of the Awards Ceremony held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Ataşehir, Istanbul, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır began his speech by saying, ‘Behind the great strides that transform individuals and societies lie the traces of women’s minds and labour.’

‘The minds, labour and sweat of Turkish women are behind our pioneering technologies.’

 

 

Minister Kacır continued: “When we look at our ancient history, we observe the active and effective role women played in the transformation of social life in every civilisation we established. We know that the foundations established by women were not merely charitable institutions, but rather the most important bearers of the social and societal needs of their time. Today, too, the traces of women’s intellect and labour can be found behind the great strides that transform individuals and societies…

Women, who make up 34.2 per cent of our R&D human resources, are making achievements that will enable our National Technology Initiative in a wide range of fields, from artificial intelligence to cyber security, from financial technologies to green transformation. The intellect, labour, and sweat of Turkish women are present in our world-leading unmanned aerial vehicles, our domestic and national automobile, our polar science expeditions, and our space endeavours.”

Women are playing an active role in Turkey’s development process.

 

 

In her opening speech, Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar, Chair of the KADEM Board of Trustees, emphasised that women’s participation in production empowers not only society and the economy, but also women themselves. “Much of the injustice experienced by women stems from economic inequality around the world. Producing, demonstrating economic viability, and showcasing one’s talents empower women not only financially but also psychologically and emotionally.”

Recalling that, according to 2023 data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), the proportion of “women entrepreneurs”, i.e. women who have started their own business or are self-employed, is around 18 per cent across Turkey, Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar said:

‘The Women in Innovation Project is one of the strongest reflections of KADEM’s vision for women… I see this project as a transformative movement that incorporates women’s entrepreneurship in Turkey into the country’s development story. Every year, more women are boldly sharing their ideas through this project, turning them into strong business models and taking an active role in Turkey’s development process.’

Emphasising that they accompany women entrepreneurs who generate solution-oriented knowledge through an education programme that intertwines theory and practice, KADEM Board Chair Av. Dr. Canan Sarı stated:

When establishing KADEM, our greatest ideal was to reveal the value that women’s ideas and products could bring to humanity and to remove all obstacles preventing their participation in socio-economic life. And this ideal has always given us strength. Through the projects we have carried out to date, our national and international activities, our discourse and educational efforts, we have made significant progress along this path. The Women in Innovation Project is one of the strongest reflections of this vision… We see it as our responsibility to encourage women’s entrepreneurship for sustainable growth and to support women entrepreneurs, particularly those with technology and innovation-focused projects.”

Support for women who say ‘I have an idea’ through the Entrepreneurship Camp

The Women in Innovation Project, which has been running since 2015, aims to increase women’s effective participation in production and employment processes by supporting women entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas. Within this scope, 30 women entrepreneurs accepted into the programme had the opportunity to develop their business ideas during a week-long training and mentoring camp.

During the camp, the entrepreneurs received comprehensive training on topics such as business model development, preparing investor presentations, financial planning, marketing and communication strategies, accompanied by expert trainers and mentors in their field. At the end of the programme, the participants presented their projects to a jury.

A total of 1.5 million TL in prizes for the winners

Following the presentations, six projects selected in two categories by the jury were awarded a total of 1.5 million TL in prizes. The awards were presented to the winning entrepreneurs at a ceremony.

To date, 2,670 female entrepreneurs have applied to the programme, which received 250 applications in 2025 alone; 235 women have earned the right to participate in camps organised by KADEM.

Approved as a ‘GUIDED PROJECT’ by the Istanbul Development Agency in its 8th period, which began last year, ‘Women in Innovation’, led by KADEM and supported by the Istanbul Development Agency (ISTKA), has contributed to the realisation of the business ideas of hundreds of women entrepreneurs to date. ‘Women in Innovation’ aims to unlock women’s innovative potential and lead the way in empowering women in economic, social, and technological fields throughout this journey from idea to product.

Awards in the Pre-Incubation and Incubation Categories:

• 1st Award: 350,000 TL
• 2nd Award: 250 bin TL
• 3rd Award: 150 bin TL

Winners in the ‘Incubation’ category of the Women in Innovation Project:

Incubation First Prize: Müjgan Öykü Şahin – ‘Kami’

Kami, a community-focused, AI-powered story and comic book platform that aims to bring Turkey’s stories to the world and replicate the same success in other countries, is Turkey’s largest story community with over 2 million users.

The platform offers writers and illustrators a digital economy where they can earn income from their works. It hosts over 400,000 original pieces of content; these stories are connected with publishers, brands, and production companies to be transformed into new films, series, and books.

Second Place Incubation Award: Fatmanur Poyraz Ekinci – ‘Beetech’

 

Varrovex, a product of Beetech, which develops innovative biotechnological solutions to protect bee health, is a natural protection method derived from the bees’ own beneficial bacteria.

Supported by TÜBİTAK, Varrovex is effective against parasites without leaving chemical residues and strengthens the bees’ immunity with its probiotic effect. It has been tested on 1,000 hives and a patent application has been filed. The award-winning Varrovex aims to export to Greece and Brazil by 2027.

Third Place Incubation Award: Handan Doğan – ‘Collaxir’

 

Collaxir is a biotechnology venture that processes fish and poultry waste using a zero-waste method to develop collagen particles suitable for human consumption, valuable by-products, and proven health products that contribute to skin, joint, and overall cellular health. Collagen is a protein that provides flexibility and strength to tissues such as skin, bones, cartilage, and tendons in the body.

Winners in the ‘Pre-Incubation’ category:

Pre-Incubation First Prize: Sümeyra Savaş – ‘SalmSense’

 

SalmSense is a rapid diagnostic system that can detect salmonella, a common bacterial disease affecting the intestinal tract in food, within minutes. By directly measuring food in liquid form, it produces results 100 times faster than existing laboratory tests. This means that, without the need for analyses that take more than a day in food production chains, verifiable results can be obtained in the field within 30 minutes.

Second Place in the Pre-Incubation Category: Pelin İlhan – ‘PA Biotechnology’

PA Biotechnology, which works on animal-free testing methods, creates models in cell culture environments. Its core product, the “skin irritation test”, is used to test product safety in the cosmetics, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Produced locally in Turkey by PA Biotechnology, the test offers a price advantage over its competitors and easy access for customers in Turkey. It also offers testing services for customers without laboratory facilities.

Third Place in the Pre-Incubation Category: Esma Erdem – ‘Esm Energy’

 

The Optimizer project is a domestic technology that minimises losses and maximises efficiency in solar energy. It is a power optimisation device and monitoring system that enhances system performance by individually controlling each solar panel in the field, while remaining unaffected by faults and shading.