The UAE and South Korea Collaborate to Empower Small Businesses

The UAE and South Korea have launched a joint cooperation program to give a further boost to the growing ecosystem of entrepreneurship and SMEs in the Emirates. They are also working to enhance funding mechanisms and competitiveness in order to increase the contribution of new sectors to the overall economic growth.

The 11-month program will see participation from 11 federal and local authorities concerned with entrepreneurship and SMEs in the UAE, including the Ministry of Finance, Central Bank of the UAE, Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, and the Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment for SME Development. 

From the Korean side, the Korea Development Institute, Korea Institute of Government Procurement, Hanyang University, and several other institutions will participate in the program. The participants will analyze the business environment of the two countries in terms of policies, incentives, development frameworks, and means of financing and discuss the areas of cooperation to give the fillip to entrepreneurship and SME development. 

An Aim to Promote and Support SMEs

“The UAE’s vision is to become an internationally favored destination for entrepreneurs by promoting startups and supporting their development and expansion through establishing an environment that attracts investments and projects. The collaboration with Korea is a new step to familiarize ourselves with the latest, top global entrepreneurial practices. It serves as an ideal opportunity to support SMEs and provide them with growth capabilities, funding mechanisms, as well as increase their competitiveness in various economic activities, especially in foreign markets. This move further promotes the overall development of business and investment environment in the country,” said Abdulla Al Saleh, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy.

The latest joint collaboration comes close on the heels of the Ministry of Economy signing a memorandum of understanding with the Korea Federation of SMEs in April this year. The pact also aimed to promote collaboration opportunities between the two in the areas of entrepreneurship support and development, the exchange of expertise in government procurement, and its role in increasing growth and competitiveness opportunities for SMEs.

The New Economic Model

According to Abdulla Al Saleh, entrepreneurship is one of the pillars of the UAE's new economic model, and the government is eager to improve the competitiveness of the business environment and support small businesses. The Ministry of Economy has recently launched the new national program ID, which offers national entrepreneurs and owners of SMEs a set of initiatives and comprehensive services to boost their businesses with more growth prospects and accessibility to markets. 

Taking into account the fact that the UAE is considered one of the leading countries in the field of entrepreneurship and Korea is seen as an international model in supporting SME growth, the program will promote the shared entrepreneurship development aspirations and strategies of both countries through facilitating the exchange of best practices in the field.

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