Arab Adventures | 2015
Amer Khalfan Mohammed Al Rawahi is an example of an entrepreneur who started his journey towards achieving his dream one step at a time. Amer first started working in the tourism sector years ago as a waiter in a hotel, during which he came to know the needs of tourists.
He learnt what they were interested in and what they are looking for while staying in Oman. He provided visitors with valuable advice regarding attractive tourism locations and visitors always commended his efforts and local knowledge.
Amer invested his experience in his second job as a driver for one of the tourism companies. He had a better chance to enhance his skills by interacting closely with visitors of different nationalities. Later Amer applied for and successfully received his Tourist Guide License from the Ministry of Tourism. Shortly after, he was promoted due to his skills and talents. He became a favorite with tourists by providing them with in-depth information of the various attractions in Oman.
After years of working as a tourist guide, Amer felt that he was ready to take the next step. He was interested in starting his own business – a company for organising local tours.
Amer then applied to be a member of Zubair SEC to support his project ‹Arab Adventures›. Working closely with the specialists and mentors at Zubair SEC, he was able to build a comprehensive business plan for the first years of his project. He also developed a marketing plan to reach the main tourism export markets for Oman. With support from Zubair SEC, Amer was able to travel to Spain and communicate with a number of tourism companies there to study cooperation opportunities. He signed a number of contracts and also visited Italy and Poland.
Amer is now benefiting from the ongoing advice and mentorship provided by Zubair SEC to develop his business. He recently purchased another vehicle to add to his fleet to ferry tourists around the Sultanate. He specializes in Safari trips to the Empty Quarter, which is attracting a growing number of visitors from around the world.
Amer is a good example of a hard working entrepreneur. He has clear goals and works to achieve them step by step by enhancing his skills first, and then launching his projects after gaining support from trustworthy organisations.
He comments, “I had a dream to have my own company and stop working for others. It was somehow difficult to achieve, but my determination enabled me to join Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme, which led to a great change in my journey towards achieving my dream. Today, I renew my commitment to working hard so that ‹Arab Adventures› becomes one of the prominent tourism companies in Oman and the region.”