And the Winners Are… Bold Ideas from the Next Generation of Clean Energy Leaders to Build Tomorrow’s Hydrogen Valleys

From 7 to 11 July 2025, the Green Hydrogen Tunisia Camp – From Theory to Action brought together 28 emerging engineers and innovators from seven countries across the MENA region and Europe. Hosted at the École Polytechnique de Tunisie, this third edition of the GH2 Camp was co-organised by the EU-funded MED-GEM Network, GIZ Tunisia through the H2Vert.TUN project, the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, and leading engineering institutions ENIT and ENPT, with media support from EU Neighbours South.

Over three days, participants took part in a dynamic summer school, gaining exposure to cutting-edge green hydrogen topics:

– Hydrogen production and storage technologies
– Power-to-X value chains
– Regulatory frameworks and hydrogen valleys
– Sustainability and energy transition modelling
– Communication and pitch training

Expert-led lectures were delivered by specialists from MED-GEM, GIZ, ENIT and ENIB, including:

• Frank Wouters (MED-GEM)
• Prof. Chiheb Bouden (ENIT)
• Dr. Essia Znouda (ENIT)
• Dr. Mustapha Taoumi (MED-GEM)
• Dr. Mohamed Sadok Guellouz (ENIB)

The Hackathon: Co-Designing Green Hydrogen Valleys for the MENA Region

On July 9, the camp transitioned from theory to practice. In a 48-hour hackathon, the 28 participants – grouped into seven interdisciplinary teams – were challenged to design a scalable Green Hydrogen Valley tailored to the MENA region.

Their task: propose viable value chains, identify use cases (local and export), and present a realistic roadmap that integrates economic, regulatory, environmental and social dimensions.

Teams received intensive mentoring from:

• Dr. Mustapha Taoumi (MED-GEM)
• Dr. Essia Znouda (ENIT)
• Prof. Fethi Karoui (ENPT)
• Wala Toumi (GIZ Tunisia)
• Toufic Rizkallah (MED-GEM)
• Raya Ben Guiza Verniers (MED-GEM)

The final pitches were delivered on Friday, 11 July at 14:00, before a high-level jury composed of:

• Prof. Chiheb Bouden (ENIT / ENPT)
• Frank Wouters (Director, MED-GEM)
• Dorra Chida (Project Manager, GIZ Tunisia / H2Vert.TUN)
• Manef Abderrabba (Director, École Polytechnique de Tunisie)
• Omar Ben Hassine Bey (Director for the Relations with the Institutions at Qair Group, CONNECT
• Ali Kanzari, Président of la Chambre Syndicale des Intégrateurs en Photovoltaïque (CIPV) (UTICA)

Meet the Teams

Each team included young professionals with backgrounds in engineering, environmental science, data modelling and energy systems. The group was composed of 15 women and 13 men, aged 20 to 30, from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Palestine, Egypt, Germany and Jordan.

Team 1: Donia Daheche, Ahmed Kaffel, Dalia Salem, Abdelnaser Dwaikat

Team 2: Youssef Dhieb, Nour Ben Amor, Nour Boukhris, Eric Eschrich

Team 3: Bilel Hamdaoui, Molka Samaali, Mahmoud Hmedat, Houda Chaabene

Team 4: Nadji Agadi, Amen Allah Daghari, Manar Lachtar, Dalanda Berrahal

Team 5: Amal Jbeli, Ikram Belkoufa, Ghaith Allah Ouesleti, Mouath Chouchane

Team 6: Mohamed Amine Ben Helal, Jihane Ramen, Asma Hammouche

Team 7: Aziz Oussama, Omayma Graichi, Mohamed Wassim Maazaoui, May Balti

Awards & Next Steps

The winning team – composed by Youssef Dhieb, Nour Ben Amor, Nour Boukhris and Eric Eschrich – impressed the jury with a project titled: « Baraka-I, Algeria Green Hydrogen Valley » presented a bold and innovative modular, cross-border Green Hydrogen Valley concept based in Hassi R’mel, Algeria, combining solar, wind, and smart technologies to kick-start a scalable, data-driven hydrogen economy for the MENA region..

The team received a special GH2 Learning Package, including access to advanced online training via RENAC (Renewables Academy Berlin), sponsored by MED-GEM Network funded by the European Union and the H2Vert. TUN Project (GIZ Tunisia).

As the GH2 Camp comes to an end, the MED-GEM Network and its partners will continue to support regional talent and cross-Mediterranean collaboration on green hydrogen and climate resilience.

📸 View the event gallery: https://www.flickr.com/gp/med-gem/xLY57f49pE