Dubai SME boosted the city economy with more than $63m of funding for entrepreneurs last year.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment for Small and Medium Enterprises Development, a subsidiary of the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), expanded its role as a key driver of the emirate’s small and medium enterprise (SME) sector’s growth, with the total value of its incentives and services reaching AED233.4m ($63.6m) in 2023.
Dubai SME achieved significant milestones in 2023, reflecting its commitment to contributing to the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, with the aim of doubling Dubai’s economy by 2033 and consolidating its position among the world’s top three cities for business and tourism.
Dubai SME funding
According to its annual report, the organisation facilitated the establishment of 2,937 new businesses in 2023 and provided vital support and guidance services to 1,186 Emirati entrepreneurs.
The report also revealed that the Mohammed Bin Rashid Fund for SME, a key initiative of Dubai SME, provided AED11.8m worth of funding to 16 projects, highlighting its pivotal role in supporting entrepreneurial initiatives.
Furthermore, 46 Emirati entrepreneurs with start-ups in the technology sector received support from the Business Incubation Department services at Hamdan Innovation Incubator (HI2).
Technology projects play a key role in fostering innovation, boosting productivity and contributing to competitiveness, economic growth and the creation of new job opportunities.
Moreover, around 100 businesses benefited from Dubai SME’s entrepreneurship promotion services in 2023.
Abdul Baset Al Janahi, CEO, said: “Guided by the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Dubai SME strives to support entrepreneurship and the development of small and medium enterprises, which are the backbone of the emirate’s economy.
“Following the launch of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, 2023 marked an exceptional year for Dubai SME, with the organisation continuing to help accelerate the goal of positioning the emirate as the most competitive environment for entrepreneurial ideas and start-ups.
“As revealed in our 2023 annual report, we are committed to providing financial and technical support to Emirati entrepreneurs and new businesses.
“As we look forward to 2024 and beyond, we are determined to identify and leverage investment opportunities to further drive growth in the SME sector.”
Since its inception in 2002, Dubai SME has supported 16,443 national companies, while 50,131 entrepreneurs have benefited from its services.
By 2023, the cumulative value of incentives and services provided to Emirati entrepreneurs and national companies reached AED1.5bn ($408.5m).
Stand-out statistics from 2002 to 2023 also included 46,209 entrepreneur trainees benefiting from Dubai SME’s training services and diploma programmes.
A total of 118 projects received financial support worth AED103.14m from the Mohammed Bin Rashid Fund for SME while 3,400 businesses benefited from its entrepreneurship promotion services.
In June 2023, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, approved the adoption of the future model.
Through this strategic model, which is aligned with the D33 Agenda, Dubai aims to support the establishment of 27,000 new Emirati businesses and provide growth support to 8,000 Emirati entrepreneurs, enabling them to create 86,000 new job opportunities and contributing approximately AED9bn ($2.5bn) to the emirate’s GDP.
This aligns with the ambitious targets set by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to double Dubai SME’s accomplishments of the past 20 years – from 13,000 to 27,000 new businesses.
The group adopts a diverse range of initiatives and programmes, spanning from identifying talented entrepreneurs and nurturing business ideas to providing ongoing support for businesses throughout their growth and expansion journey.
The certified incubator network in the city, consisting of 17 accredited incubators, welcomes all innovative ideas for testing and provides the necessary resources for their development, transforming these concepts into profitable business ventures.
Notably, six of these incubators operate within educational institutions, including universities and schools. This strategy aligns with the sixth pillar of the city’s Fifty-Year Charter, which emphasises the transformation of local and private universities into economic and creative free zones, encouraging student innovation and entrepreneurship through university-based incubator programmes.
By integrating business incubators within universities, Dubai SME has introduced a transformative initiative aimed at enhancing infrastructure within educational institutions.
This initiative seeks to cultivate the potential of young talents, stimulate their creativity and innovation and instil an entrepreneurial mindset from an early age.
By providing essential support at the inception of their ventures, these programmes will empower students to establish their own companies and embark on successful entrepreneurial journeys.
To enable youth in the eastern region to start projects and turn their ideas into reality, Dubai SME established a new business facilitation centre, Tasheel, at the Hatta Community Centre to support young entrepreneurs and SME owners, who can utilise smart services to issue tax-free business licences, including an Intelaq Licence via the Invest in Dubai platform.
The centre also offers multi-use halls and a meeting room that serves as a hub for entrepreneurs.
In Q4 2023, Dubai SME launched the Supply Chain Readiness Programme in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS).
The programme, designed to empower Emirati SME suppliers according to global supply chain standards, conducted focus groups for a total of 41 SMEs to capture feedback from Emirati SME suppliers.
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