Meeting emphasizes SMEs sector’s importance in building a knowledge-based and innovative economy in the UAE
Her Excellency Alia bint Abdulla Al Mazrouei, UAE Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, held a roundtable with 20 directors and CEOs of venture capital funds. The meeting was aimed at enhancing cooperation to support the development of the UAE’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and the growth of startups by promoting their expansion into new economic sectors. This will be achieved through equipping them with necessary skills to enhance their chances for securing funding, partnerships, investment opportunities, and engagement with domestic and foreign investors.
H.E. Alia Al Mazrouei said: “The UAE sees SMEs and entrepreneurship as key drivers in building a knowledge-based, innovative, and competitive national economy. Therefore, we are continuing concerted efforts to enhance the country’s entrepreneurial environment, making it more appealing to startup owners, innovators, and talents, and to become a leading hub for entrepreneurship by the next decade, in line with the goals of the national agenda for entrepreneurship and SMEs.”
“The meeting with venture capital funds concerned with supporting SMEs in the country forms part of these efforts and contributed to the exchange of experiences on best practices and policies in the sector, enhancing cooperation in driving SME growth and enabling their access to regional and global markets,” H.E. added.
During the meeting, the Minister of Entrepreneurship highlighted the UAE’s favorable environment for investors, venture capitalists and venture capital deals, which ranked first in MENA in terms of the number of venture capital deals, and second in terms of the value of these investments attracted by emerging capital markets in H1 2024, as revealed by a Magnitt report.
Furthermore, H.E. Alia Al Mazrouei reviewed a set of indicators confirming the importance of the SMEs sector in supporting the growth of the national economy. SMEs constitute 95 per cent of all companies operating in the country and nearly 86 per cent of the private sector workforce, significantly contributing to overall jobs and employment opportunities in the country.
H.E. Alia Al Mazrouei was apprised of the future plans of the venture capital funds that attended the meeting and their proposals for business growth and expansion in the UAE. She also discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between the Ministry of Economy and these funds to develop new partnerships that support growth opportunities for startups, thereby encouraging innovation and creativity.
The meeting was attended by directors and CEOs representing 20 venture capital funds, including: Access Bridge Ventures, Aditum VC Fund, Antler Ventures, Arbor Ventures, Arzan Venture Capital, BECO, COTU, Dubai Future District Fund, EQ2 Ventures, Flat6Labs, Global Ventures, Iliad Partners, MBRIF, MEVP, Mubadala Ventures, Nuwa Capital, Oraseya Capital, Plus VC, Stride Ventures, and VentureSouq.
