Sharjah, October 30, WAM / The Sharjah Foundation for Supporting Entrepreneurial Projects “Ruwad” of the Sharjah Economic Development Department recorded positive growth in the number of new projects that joined the foundation during the third quarter of this year, to a total of 67 projects, with an increase of 15.5% compared to the 58 projects completed, recorded in the second quarter of the same year.
The increase comes to translate the Foundation’s tireless efforts to foster an environment that supports the growth of entrepreneurial enterprises and encourages entrepreneur citizens to develop their projects and direct them to priority sectors to serve the development plans of the Emirate of Sharjah and the United Arab Emirates as a whole.
The projects that joined the Foundation were characterized by their geographic diversity to include most cities in the emirate, as the city of Sharjah hosted 66% of the total projects, about 11% for the city of Khorfakkan, 9% for the city of Kalba, 7.5% for the city of Maliha and 7.5% distributed over Al Dhaid, Al Madam and Al Bataeh.
Projects also varied in terms of sectors and activities, with the commercial sector leading with 58% of the total number of projects, 37% for the professional sector and 4% for the industrial sector.
His Excellency Sultan Abdullah bin Hadda Al Suwaidi, President of the Sharjah Economic Development Department, said that the positive results that the Ruwad Foundation continues to achieve are the result of concerted and integrated efforts between the Foundation and its partners in the agencies. government, private sector representatives and entrepreneurs in the Emirate of Sharjah and at the state level, which contribute to the support and development of the business leadership sector in the Emirate and provide the best environment to stimulate and encourage small and medium-sized enterprises and direct them to the commercial, service and industrial sectors that bring added value to the economy of the Emirate and the national economy and serve development trends and future visions.
For his part, His Excellency Hamad Ali Abdullah Al Mahmoud, Director of the Sharjah Foundation for Supporting Entrepreneurial Projects “Ruwad” said that the business sector in the Emirate of Sharjah is constantly growing, which is reflected in the positive results achieved by the Foundation during the third quarter of this year, noting that the “Ruwad” Foundation is doing well, continues to develop its services and ensure its diversity to meet the needs and requirements of entrepreneur citizens, and is also working to intensify its efforts to communicate with emerging generations of different educational categories to instill entrepreneurial spirit and a culture of self-employment and motivate them to develop innovative ideas and ways to turn them into commercial projects on the ground.
He explained that during the third quarter of this year, the Foundation received 81 applications to join the Foundation and, after the evaluation and study, 67 pilot projects were approved.
Furthermore, the number of projects that have approved the renewal of their membership for the second and third years has reached 57 projects, which enjoy complete exemption from government taxes according to the incentives and concessions provided by the Foundation, while the number of projects that have been approved to extend their membership for the fourth and fifth years are 18 projects, which are projects that enjoy a 50% exemption from government taxes.
In terms of field visits, the Foundation’s working groups conducted 46 field visits during the third quarter to follow up on existing projects which are among the Foundation’s members and which enjoy its support. 18 consultations were provided to citizens. entrepreneurs by consultants and specialists of the Foundation and about 80 interviews were conducted with owners of small and medium-sized enterprises, receiving and following up on more than 4,300 questions and requests from Emirati entrepreneurs through the foundation’s communication channels, while 157 members were been supported by government taxes.
At the training level, Al-Mahmoud added that the total number of participants in the training courses reached 159. The training programs varied between specializations related to marketing, finance and management, ways of preparing feasibility studies, studying business opportunities in markets and other skills related to commercial practice and marketing.
He stressed that the geographical diversity of small and medium-sized enterprises in the emirate is one of the priorities that the “Ruwad” Foundation intends to consolidate and that the results of the third quarter saw the distribution of the projects in most cities of the emirate.
The activities of the projects varied between the three main areas “commercial, professional and industrial” and were concentrated in vital activities, as the food and food sector represented 35% of the total projects, 9% for the clothing trade sector and fashion, 9% for the auto service and bicycle maintenance sector, and 7.5% for activities related to the sports sector from playground rental, sportswear, fitness centers and clubs. The trade in flowers and natural plants represented 6% of the project activities, 54% for beauty centers, 3% for the perfumery trade, and 4.5% for industries in the wood and rubber sector, as well as various activities that included tourism and entertainment services, management of warehouses and medical clinics Accounting and auditing services, advertising services, activities related to procurement, order delivery, antiques trade and others.
Al Mahmoud indicated that the third quarter saw meetings with the Arab Heritage Center, the Authority for the Development of Commerce and Tourism, the Sharjah Heritage Institute, the Department of Real Estate Registration, the University of Sharjah and the Academy of police sciences. and the opportunity to strengthen the participation of the owners of small and medium-sized enterprises of the members of the institution in the events organized by the partners.
New partnerships with media organizations are currently being developed to develop promotion and marketing plans for the initiatives and activities of the Foundation and its members, to support small and medium-sized enterprises and to benefit from the capabilities of these media to support marketing. and promotion efforts and to provide training for small and medium business owners in those areas.
The “Ruwad” Foundation completed more than 70 media activities during the third quarter of this year, distributed among press releases, interviews, television and radio interviews, publications on social media accounts, marketing videos and media coverage of visits and activities of the Foundation with its partners.
