Date: January 31, 2018
With an aim to help start-ups plan and take advantage of the opportunities presented by the recently announced national budget, Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC) organised a ‘Tajribati’ session on the subject for the benefit of its members.
The session shed light on the topic “The National Budget and Opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).”
The main speakers at the January session of ‘Tajribati’, Ahmed Said Al Kshoub, Economist and Ashok Hariharan, Partner and Tax Manager, KPMG outlined what was announced in the budget statement and what it means for SMEs.
Ahmed Said Al Kshoub said, “I would like to laud the efforts of Zubair SEC. The centre has truly contributed to the development of the entrepreneurship culture in the Sultanate and has been tremendously supporting young Omanis to achieve business success. It has gone beyond the traditional mentorship models and has been a partner and collaborator for its members. Empowering entrepreneurs and owners of start-ups will result in sustainable impact and Oman will benefit immensely out of it. Zubair SEChas been playing a major role in supporting the government efforts in nourishing entrepreneurship and encouraging self-employment. Programmes like ‘Tajribati’ is certain to empower the start-ups as they stand to benefit from experienced speakers and specialists.”
Highlighting that there have been many positive points outlined in the budget for SMEs, Al Kshoub said, “It was aimed at strengthening the role of SMEs in nation building and creating jobs for Omani youth.”
Al Khsoub elucidated as to how SMEs have received a lot of attention in the 2018 budget. He explained that as per the new budget, there is a good space for SMEs to acquire projects and contracts, which is a significant step. Besides, it has been decided to speed up the payments of SMEs and continue providing credit facilities to SMEs.”
Al Khsoub advised SMEs to have a clear-cut strategy for their business. He said, “Think on the lines of merging with a fellow SME. Through these mergers, it is possible to create large companies in the local market in over five to 10 years.”
Ashok Hariharan said, “It was great for me and Sundar to be given the opportunity to provide insights on the Oman Government’s 2018 budget to Omani SMEs who were invited by Zubair SEC for their Tajribati session. We were delighted with the interactive session we had and the keen desire of the audience to get a deeper understanding of how the Government earns its revenues and allocates its expenditure to different sectors I was also impressed by their knowledge of the macro issues and challenges being faced by Oman and other economies in the region on account of the low oil prices. Zubair SEC must be complimented for the tremendous efforts they are taking to help Omani SMEs succeed in their business ventures and provide them a platform to gain insights from other businessmen and professionals. I wish your initiative continued success”.
The ‘Tajribati’ series serves as a unique platform to connect industry experts with start-up owners and new entrepreneurs to exchange views, discuss common challenges and share best practices. The ‘Tajribati’ session was attended by entrepreneurs, industry consultants and aspiring entrepreneurs.
Expounding the thought behind choosing this topic for the session, Ali Shaker, Business Advisor at Zubair SEC said, “Faced with rising economic challenges, it is important that SMEs are ready to rethink business ideas and innovate to stay competitive. It is therefore vital for SMEs to be as prepared as possible as they look to prosper from the plusses presented in the budget. Our expert speakers provided a framework of the support allocated to SMEs and how they can take advantage of the backing. The Government has provided the facilities and incentives for SMEs to grow in Oman and we hope they seize the opportunities.”
Zubair SEC has held several sessions covering a variety of topics pertinent to SMEs. Given the importance of such discussions and transparent dialogue platforms, the Centre plans to hold further series to keep building capacity of its members in all critical areas.
The ongoing ‘Tajribati’ discussion series organised by Zubair SEC, a social responsibility initiative of The Zubair Corporation, is aimed at supporting young entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium enterprises. The session provides them a platform to have dialogues and discussions with experts on topics related to business.
On a second note, Zubair SEC is currently in the process of finalising the winners list for the Direct Support Programme 2018. The winners of the fifth edition of Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme (DSP) will be announced in few weeks’ time. The previous editions of the Direct Support Programme have received a huge response and registered commended results. The Programme provides extensive advisory, business development, and financial support to high