Date: December 21, 2016
In line with its efforts to raise and promote a culture for entrepreneurship in the Sultanate, Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for collaboration with the Omani Journalists Association (OJA).
A key objective of the MoU is shedding light on the success stories of small enterprises and entrepreneurs in the Sultanate and building capacity in the area of media and communication. Understanding that media has an important role to play in raising a culture of entrepreneurship, the MOU aims to positively enrich perception of entrepreneurship through articles, interviews and exposure. This becomes significant especially in the context that an increase in exposure to entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in the media engenders a more positive attitude to entrepreneurship.
The MoU was signed by Awad Baqweir, Chairman of the Omani Journalists Association and Khalid Muhammad Al Zubair, Managing Director of The Zubair Corporation. The signing ceremony was attended by OJA board members and executives from The Zubair Corporation and Zubair SEC.
As part of the MoU, OJA will organise workshops for Zubair SEC members on the importance of media and press coverage, and how to get featured and covered in the media. Zubair SEC will extend advisory services to journalists and members of OJA who aspire to establish their own businesses or already have some small businesses running.
Khalid Muhammad Al Zubair, Managing Director of The Zubair Corporation said: “Journalists in the Sultanate have been playing a pivotal role in raising awareness and building a culture of entrepreneurship. It is through their dedicated efforts that many entrepreneurs and owners of small businesses got the opportunity to be featured and known in the market. Press coverage, features, articles and interviews have helped and will continue to help new entrepreneurs immensely. Members of Zubair SEC have been privileged to enjoy such opportunities and make the best out of what the media exposure could offer through efforts facilitated by our Centre”.
Emphasising that there has been an increase in the volume of positive media coverage of entrepreneurship, he added: “we are happy to announce this collaboration with the Omani Journalists Association, but we must say that this partnership is not new as journalists have always been key stakeholders and partners in the joint efforts to support small enterprises in the Sultanate, and we are looking forward to further collaboration to extend best efforts possibly to small enterprises and entrepreneurs in the country”.
Awad Said Baqweir, chairman of the Omani Journalists Association said: “we are appreciative to Zubair SEC for their significant interest and emphasis on the role of the media in the development of entrepreneurship in the Sultanate. Media exposure is key to the shedding light on the business activities of any enterprise in the world, especially small and medium enterprises that are always in need to be known in the market to compete.” He added: “Such exposure needs a lot of effort by both business owners and journalists in the Sultanate who play an important role in supporting their fellow citizens of entrepreneurs.
Ali Rashed Al Mata’ni, Deputy Chairman at OJA, Head of the Training Committee, said: “signing this memorandum of collaboration with Zubair SEC reflects both parties’ interest in the development of entrepreneurship in the Sultanate. This collaboration is considered an important step in further engaging journalists in the arena of SMEs development in order to develop their understanding even more around several issues concerning SMEs and entrepreneurship. Such an understanding is key to the progress of an entrepreneurship culture in the country”. He added: “This MoU aligns with the capacity building programmes at OJA that aim at developing journalists’ skills and calibre in many areas including business entrepreneurship. As such, OJA will encourage its members and journalists in general to pay special attention in featuring entrepreneurial stories and raise society’s awareness around the development of the SME sector’. Ali also thanked Zubair SEC for its support and initiative that will contribute largely in enabling journalists who are specialized in business entrepreneurship in the Sultanate.
Zubair SEC, a social responsibility initiative of The Zubair Corporation has more than 330 members who are entitled to the centre’s advisory and capacity building services along with networking opportunities and business development support.