Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Sunday, June 15, 2025
    961
    Instagram Facebook LinkedIn TikTok
    • Breaking News
    • Guides
    • Food & Drink
    • Listicles
    • Join the Team
    • Whatsapp
      • 961
      • 961 News
    • AUB Outdoors ☀️
    Advertise with Us Get the App
    961
    Home»Magazine»Lifestyle»People
    4 Mins Read

    This Lebanese Woman Is One of the World’s Most Powerful Women In The Region

    By Ranim SalmanSeptember 16, 2019Updated:April 28, 2021
    Facebook WhatsApp Copy Link

    In 2014 and 2015, Reine Abbas was selected as one of the World’s Most Powerful Arab Women by Arabian Business, a Dubai-based English-language weekly magazine, for her exceptional work in tech in the region. Reine is a Lebanese woman who found her passion for gaming, teaching kids and teens, and shifting this generation into a productive one. This mother of three has excelled in time management as she manages to be a super-mom, a super-gamer, and a super-educator.

     

    @reineabbasembedded via  

    Reine graduated with a Masters’ Degree in Visual Arts from Balamand University in the North of Lebanon. She taught herself the basics and technicalities of coding and worked for DigiPen, a U.S. gaming company that helped her learn the know-how of the business.

    In 2010, she was the winner of the “Innovation in ICT” Award, organized by the Women in Information Technology. In 2010, she was elected as one of the top 20 Lebanese entrepreneurs by the Executive Magazine. In 2013, she won the “Artistic Expression” Award (WOW) at the 6th New Arab Woman Forum, and was also selected the same year as one of the most five powerful women in gaming by Inc.com.

     

    Reine’s successful journey started with Douma, a Lebanese political video game. On their way to work back in 2007, Reine and her partner found themselves in the middle of a mob burning tires to block the road of their political rivals.

     “I remember the helplessness we felt at that time. We were determined to do something, so we spoke up in the language we speak best: video games,” she told Annahar.

    @reineabbasembedded via  

     

    In a simple Flash-based fighting game, Douma brings the citizens to become puppeteers and use government leaders as puppets. Instead of fighting each other for their politicians, the politicians pummel each other. On its launch date, the game went viral with nearly 12,000 downloads. 

    Seeing the huge success of a single video-game, Reine sought more and more. In 2008, she founded the first Indie gaming company in Lebanon and one of the first in the Middle East: Wixel Studios.

    @reineabbasembedded via  

     

    With her partners, Ziad Feghali and Karim Abi Saleh, Reine managed to found the gaming company that develops fun and innovative video games based on original local and international intellectual property. Since its launching, the studio has produced 45 games in both English and Arabic, including several award-winning games. 

    @spicatechacademyembedded via  

    When Reine was asked by her 4-year old son to teach him and his friends how to design video games, the idea of Spica Tech was born. She thought that it was the right time to turn kids from digital consumers to producers, especially that kids in the MENA region are the biggest digital consumers in the world. 

     

    Spica Tech is an academy that teaches kids and teens how to design and produce video games. In the academy, kids and teens learn game design, coding, implementation, art, testing, publishing, and marketing. They get exposed to critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem-solving, especially since, in video games, you have to create both a problem and a solution.

    @reineabbasembedded via  

    Besides, the students learn entrepreneurship, production, and management skills. Hence, whichever path they choose in the real world, they would have already acquired the necessary abilities and skills needed to do anything. 

     

    Believing that all children deserve an education, the academy hosts several children from different backgrounds, including kids with difficulties, kids with autism, dyslexia, ADHD, etc. 

    @reineabbasembedded via  

    To inspire girls to join the academy, Reine offers girls 50% to join the courses, helping them know all of their capacities and go beyond what their societies tell them of limitations. In this male-dominant industry, girls are less than 15% in tech and video games. 

     

    Up until this day, the academy has assisted over 500 students in creating an online game from scratch. The students can create a full product and publish the game online, allowing them to have a sense of responsibility for what they present.

    @reineabbasembedded via  

    Reine receives sponsorship for her work from several corporations, such as MBC groups, Ferrari World, and Al Jazeera kids. In addition to that, Spica Tech participated in 3 competitions, and they were big winners.

     

    The last Competition, Cartier Women Initiative in San Francisco, included 3000 applicants from around the world. Spica Tech was chosen out of the 700 regional applicants, and they won exposure and services that are very important to grow the business.

    In an interview with BeryTech, Reine gave her advice for those just starting out, “Share your idea and don’t be scared that someone might rip it off, even if they do, it’s proof that it was a great idea!”

    Follow @the961 on Instagram!

    She961
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email

    For You

    nada koussa miss world miss lebanon 961

    Nada Koussa Just Left To Represent Lebanon At Miss World

    30 under 30

    Meet The 20 Lebanese Who Made It On Forbes’ 30 Under 30

    lebanese execs

    17 Lebanese Execs Just Dominated The Forbes Middle East’s ‘Global Meets Local’ 2024 List

    cybelle bou chaaya

    Miss Lebanon Runner-Up Cybelle Bou Chaaya Opens Up To Us About The Online Bullying She’s Facing

    nada koussa miss lebanon

    Nada Koussa Just Won Miss Lebanon 2024

    We Spoke To A Miss Lebanon Runner-Up About What It’s Like Competing, Here’s What She Told Us

    lebanon cybergames 2025 hacking 961

    Lebanon Just Won A Global Hacking Competition

    lebanon jounieh cyprus by ferry 961

    You’ll Soon Be Able To Travel Between Lebanon & Cyprus By Ferry

    June 8, 2025
    whish pay lebanon 961

    You Can Now Use Whish Pay At Shopify Stores

    June 13, 2025

    Ampere Cinema Reopens Its Doors In North Lebanon After 28 Years Of Absence

    June 30, 2022
    lebanese beer brands almaza beirut beer 961

    Lebanese Beer Brands Are Publicly Throwing Shade, And It’s Getting Frothy

    June 7, 2025

    20 Celebrities You Probably Didn’t Know Had Lebanese Roots

    April 22, 2019
    Michel Hayek

    Michel Hayek 2025: Predictions For The World

    December 31, 2024
    Michel Hayek

    Michel Hayek 2025: Predictions For Lebanon

    December 31, 2024
    visa whish money partnership

    Visa and Whish Money Just Partnered To Push Digital Payments in Lebanon and Abroad

    May 6, 2025

    Lebanon’s Shawarma Is Going Viral in The Philippines

    April 21, 2019
    961 Logo
    Facebook WhatsApp TikTok Instagram

    Popular Topics

    • Guides
    • Eat & Drink
    • Listicles
    • Lebanon News
    • Diaspora
    • Explained

    961

    • About
    • WhatsApp Channel
    • News WhatsApp Channel
    • Corrections Policy
    • Ownership & Funding

    Services

    • Advertise
    • Careers
    • App Waitlist
    • Contact Us
    • Newsletter
    961™ | All Rights Reserved ©2025
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Okay