During a meeting with several regional entrepreneurs from across the UAE as well as representatives of institutions and SMEs incubators, H.E. Dr Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium Enterprises confirmed that sustaining SMEs is a leading concern in the Ministry's schedule and also in making certain the development of the national economic situation in the future. The business ecosystem is presently concentrated on taking on concrete actions to find useful solutions to all challenges related to entrepreneurship as well as strengthening systems for its security and also success throughout the nation's numerous vital fields, he stated.

The meeting was gone to by H.E Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade; H.E Sanad Al Meqbali, Chairman of the Board of the Emirati Entrepreneurs Association; as well as Ibrahim Shahin, Vice President of the Emirati Entrepreneurs Association and discussed the demands of local entrepreneurs, agents of organizations and also SMEs incubators. It also reviewed the demand to set a clear vision to identify the top priorities and also procedures during the next phase.

H.E Dr Belhoul paid attention to the views of the guests and exchanged his views with them on one of the most crucial subjects connected to encouraging entrepreneurs and also producing a brand-new company technique based upon participation as well as tactical partnership in between MoE and business owners to discover usual remedies that contribute to the prosperity of the sector and also its growth.

The meeting also assessed the Ministry's vision for the following phase, along with discussing all the solutions that are currently being studied. The conference additionally reviewed various procedures to minimize the cost of working, diversify funding choices and also promote financial procedures, and methods to increase the scope of rewards and centres, specifically those related to governmental acquisitions.

H.E included: "Several actions have actually been adopted at the government and local levels to support the industry and enhance its payment to the nationwide economic climate. SMEs have gotten a great deal of interest from the UAE and local governments throughout the past months in light of the COVID-19 crisis in the form of support as well as financial stimulus bundles that have been revealed. MoE and also its companions will certainly remain to function in the direction of launching these tasks as well as sustaining the capability as well as continuity of their activities, which will certainly have a tangible positive effect on the country's SME industry."

Al Falasi praised the initiatives of various stakeholders in the country for their initiatives to equip resident business owners in every means, contributing to the creation of a new generation of entrepreneurs who are capable of supporting the national economy and also enhancing its variety, consequently boosting the country's global competitiveness in lots of vital industries.

"SMEs represent the backbone of the global economy and serve as a flexible tool for governments to support their economies. The sector makes up about 90 per cent of companies in the world, and in some developed countries such as South Korea and Japan, its contribution reaches up to 99 per cent. SMEs contributed 52 per cent to the UAE's non-oil GDP in 2017, H.E added.

The Government of the UAE seeks to continuously enhance the competitiveness of the business environment in the country and introduce various programs and policies that contribute to maintaining the advanced position of the country globally. As a result, the UAE ranked fifth globally in entrepreneurship according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) index.

H.E, even more, underscored MOE's keenness to work intensively together with all companions at the government and regional degrees through the UA SME Council and also the National SME Programme.