How a clay pot and a millennia-old irrigation technique are becoming a bold answer to water scarcity in the MENA region.
In a region where summers are growing hotter and water is becoming scarcer, one Lebanese startup is looking 4,000 years into the past to find answers, and turning them into a thriving business.
Meet OyaWay , the first company to bring oyas, ancient clay irrigation pots, to the Lebanese and broader MENA market. The concept is elegantly simple: a porous ceramic vessel buried near a plant’s roots slowly releases water directly into the soil through osmosis, delivering exactly what the plant needs, when it needs it, with near-zero waste from evaporation or surface runoff.
The result? Up to 70% less water used, and plants that thrive on their own, without daily attention from their owners
70%
water saved vs. conventional irrigation
4,000
years of proven irrigation history behind the oya technique
1st
company to market oyas in Lebanon and the region
The Problem Worth Solving
Watering plants and gardens sounds simple enough. But for millions of households and businesses across Lebanon and the wider MENA region, it is anything but. Between the fear of over or underwatering, the daily time commitment, and the mounting anxiety of water shortages during peak summer months, many people end up either neglecting their plants or wasting precious water in the process.
OyaWay’s founders identified this friction and responded not by reinventing the wheel, but by reviving and updating one of humanity’s most time-tested inventions. Their clay oyas, manufactured locally, act as underground reservoirs. Buried at the root level, water slowly and consistently seep through their micropores into the surrounding soil. Plants draw moisture only when they need it, with watering taking place over 5 to 10 days on average.
“Oyas provide both households and businesses with an easy, convenient, and hassle-free watering system that allows plants to take just the right amount of water, only when needed”.
— Paul Samaha, Founder
From Selection to Acceleration: OyaWay’s Journey Inside ScaleSmart
OyaWay was selected as one of only four startups to join the third batch of ScaleSmart, Berytech’s competitive pre-investment acceleration program designed to help growth-stage companies become investment-ready.
Since joining, OyaWay has been immersed in an intensive, structured program that spans financial modeling, marketing strategy, governance, fundraising, and product development, all tailored to the unique realities of each startup.
December 2025
Application & Outreach
OyaWay applied to ScaleSmart Batch 3 following Berytech’s outreach events including the Raise Smart Webinar and the Meet the Sharks event.
January 2026
Due Diligence & Selection
After passing due diligence checks and ScaleSmart interviews as a Top 10 candidate, OyaWay was selected into the final cohort of four startups.
February 2026
Induction & Needs Assessment
OyaWay completed its online induction with the ScaleSmart team, submitted a self-assessment, and began one-on-one needs assessment clinics with the Investment Unit.
February – April 2026
Workshops & Expert Clinics
Intensive workshops in financial modeling & valuation, marketing & growth hacking, and personalized clinics in product optimization and growth strategy with external industry experts.
May – June 2026
Fundraising, Governance & Pitching
Workshops and clinics in fundraising roadmap, sales strategy, governance for scaling, and now pitching, with the demo day approaching.
What OyaWay Is Building Right Now
Being first to market always comes with a particular challenge: you must educate your audience before you can sell to them. Very few people in Lebanon, let alone the wider MENA region, have heard of oyas, and OyaWay’s team is acutely aware of this. A significant focus of their work inside ScaleSmart is figuring out the right strategies to raise awareness and bring a genuinely unfamiliar product into the mainstream.
“What works, says Paul, founder, is word of mouth - which allowed us to secure deals with offices, restaurants, and guest houses. In the end, both businesses and households face the same watering challenges”.
Challenges Faced, Current Focus, and ScaleSmart’s Support
One of OyaWay’s biggest priorities upon entering ScaleSmart was gaining a thorough understanding of its finances and validating its multi-year sales projections with confidence. Today, the team is focused on raising awareness in a first-to-market category while scoping the operational needs to establish its own oya manufacturing unit. Through ScaleSmart, OyaWay is also building a solid growth strategy with concrete KPIs to measure success and strengthen its readiness for future investors.
The Vision
Looking ahead, OyaWay envisions sustainable growth through investor partnerships and continuous product innovation for households and businesses across the MENA region.
On the operational side, OyaWay is also working toward establishing its own manufacturing unit, a move that would allow greater quality control, scalability, and cost efficiency as demand grows. It is an ambitious goal that the ScaleSmart program is helping them plan for methodically.
Why This Matters Beyond the Business
Lebanon faces one of the most acute water stress challenges in the world. As climate change intensifies summer droughts and public water infrastructure remains unreliable, solutions that drastically reduce water consumption are not just commercially interesting; they are genuinely necessary. OyaWay’s product sits at the rare intersection of ecological responsibility, cultural heritage, and practical everyday utility.
Looking Ahead
As ScaleSmart Batch 3 heads into its final stretch, OyaWay is preparing to take their growth further with exposure, networking, and opportunities at upcoming ScaleSmart matchmaking and investment events. But their ambition stretches beyond:
The team aspires to use ScaleSmart’s offerings to establish OyaWay as the definitive name in sustainable irrigation across MENA, continuously innovating their product for both households and businesses, and building the kind of investor-backed foundation that turns a first-mover advantage into lasting market leadership.
“We want to leverage ScaleSmart’s mentorship, resources and network connections to set OyaWay on the path for healthy growth through strong partnerships, and to innovate our offerings for both households and businesses in the MENA region.”
– OyaWay Team
Follow OyaWay’s journey on Instagram and LinkedIn, and explore their full product range at oyaway.com.
