Lamia Hanafi

Lamia Hanafi 

Lamia Hanafi is a dynamic entrepreneur and innovation expert with extensive experience in the startup ecosystems in France, the UK, and the USA. Currently, Lamia is the Head of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at UM6P France (Mohammed VI Polytechnic University), where she plays a pivotal role in fostering innovation and entrepreneurship between Europe and Africa. In 2024, she launched UM6P France’s first Greentech and Healthtech startup accelerator, connecting entrepreneurs across both continents, as well as innovation initiatives aimed at companies targeting Africa.

Lamia’s impressive journey is marked by numerous achievements along the way. In 2015, she co-founded a successful real estate startup, which gained international recognition and was sold in 2020. Additionally, it was ranked among the Top 100 French Startups by Challenges Magazine. In 2016, she was selected for the prestigious Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), held by President Barack Obama at Stanford University, Silicon Valley.

A graduate in Anglo-American Business Law from Paris, with further studies in business, Lamia also pursued advanced training in Entrepreneurship and Design Thinking at Stanford University, giving her a solid foundation in global business strategies and innovative methodologies.

In 2017, she served as a mentor at the American Chamber of Commerce in Paris (Amcham Paris) and was a semi-finalist in the TechWomen Program (US Embassy of Rabat). Her innovative ideas also earned her a spot at the University of Oxford Accelerator. Lamia’s pitch skills were also recognized, as she was a finalist at the “Pitch in the Plane” Paris-NYC, coached by France’s Secretary of State for Digital Affairs. Lamia also won the Innovation Trophy at RENT Paris (Real Estate and New Technologies Exhibition). In 2019, Lamia’s innovative endeavors earned her a spot in the esteemed Facebook Startup Accelerator at Station F (Paris).

Lamia is a prominent speaker in Europe and Africa, delivering talks on women’s role in technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Alongside her entrepreneurial ventures, she has lectured at top business and engineering schools. Her expertise in innovation, entrepreneurship, and digital transformation has earned her numerous awards and a respected place in the global startup ecosystem.

Lamia has been featured in numerous media outlets, including Forbes, BFM Business, and Journal du Net in France, as well as in prominent publications in the USA, Switzerland, and Morocco. She continues to inspire and support innovation and entrepreneurship between France, Morocco, and beyond.

In addition to her entrepreneurial endeavors, Lamia Hanafi has been actively supporting both the Moroccan and African diasporas since 2017.

In 2017, she founded “La French Moroccan Touch” the first network of Franco-Moroccan entrepreneurs at Station F, with the support of the Moroccan Ambassador to France. She mentored at “HEC Au Féminin” (Paris) and shared her digital expertise as a speaker at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rabat. Her entrepreneurial spirit was recognized with an award at the Trophées des Marocains du Monde in the Entrepreneurs category. Furthermore, she founded the La French Moroccan Touch think tank at Station F, solidifying her position as a thought leader.

In 2019, she was invited by the Ministry of Moroccans Living Abroad in Rabat to join a circle of experts focused on mobilizing the Moroccan diaspora around innovation and entrepreneurship topics. Moreover, she has been involved in supporting the African diaspora through her participation in the “Assises de la Transformation Digitale” in Paris in 2019, where she contributed to discussions on digital transformation and innovation for the African diaspora. Her ongoing work helps to strengthen the connections and opportunities for diasporas across Africa and Europe.