His attention to detail and close following of local and international entrepreneurship allowed him to recreate the Walt Disney works with a focus on Arab youth and children. Ahmad Al Masri produces 2-D and 3-D documentaries and series.
In light of the absence of Arabic production of cartoons that reflect the Arab society, and the complete dominance of Western production, came the idea to establish “Progressive Generation”, a production company designing and producing purely Arabic content. This represents the start of cartoons production in the Arab region.
Al Masri, Co-Founder and CEO says: “in the beginning, we faced challenges on all levels such as financing and marketing. Additionally, consumers, society, and firms had no faith in newly emerging businesses, especially youth-led ones.”
He confirms he overcame the challenges and built his business with “determination, passion, and hard work” and added that “the Arab region has no production of cartoons, therefore, we aim at providing appropriate digital content in Arabic.”
Al Masri introduced his business to 15 entrepreneurs supported by the business incubator of Maqha AlNahda, part of the Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD)’s “Design and Determine” project. 15 entrepreneurs were selected out of 35 applicants to participate in the organization’s efforts in supporting the youth and new emerging businesses in Jordan.
Reiterating the importance of having a job, he shared his message to entrepreneurs saying: “a successful entrepreneur must be a successful employee first. Then, he can transfer his experience to his own business. But most importantly, one must be patient.” He noted that entrepreneurship is a big responsibility toward the community.
The meeting was preceded by a training session where Amin Alasoufi, the Director of Economic Studies and Research Department at Amman Chamber of Industry spoke about procedures associated with importing and exporting processes and access to importers and clients.
Alasoufi noticed entrepreneurs’ concerns regarding the number of procedures and regulations relevant to importing and exporting and establishing a business and he explained it was “very easy and simple as long as you arm yourselves with will and determination.” He advised them to “approach institutions that support youth and entrepreneurship, and fear not.”
Al Masri and Alasoufi meeting youth came as part of the business training series for the business incubator project. The project started in February 2022 and aims at addressing challenges facing youth such as establishing and sustaining entrepreneurial projects by presenting successful models from Jordan to share experiences with overcoming challenges and techniques for networking with stakeholders.
The “Design and Determine” project is an initiative within the initiatives of Maqha AlNahda, and a pioneering project launched by the Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD) in 2019 in the capital, Amman, seeks to enhance Jordanians’ and refugees’ capacity building, improve their employability, build their professional skills, and support entrepreneurs to start work, grow, and expand.
This project is funded by the European Regional Development and Protection Program (RDPP II) for Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq, which is supported by the Czech Republic, Denmark, the European Union, Ireland, and Switzerland.
