As part of supporting small and medium enterprises

Doha, Qatar, 17, July 2018:  Qatar Development Bank (QDB) organized a workshop on national strategy for business incubators and business accelerators, which was attended by representatives from concerned authorities responsible for entrepreneurship and development of small and medium enterprises in Qatar.

During the workshop, the main challenges facing Qatari entrepreneurs were discussed, furthermore, appropriate solutions were developed and opportunities to support emerging projects by establishing a foothold in local, regional and global markets were explored.

This strategy is the first of its kind in Qatar and in the Arab countries. It aims at nurturing business startup companies which help develop the business sector and young established companies who have significant potential to grow. The strategy aims at assembling expertise and competencies to create a state of cooperation and communication among various stakeholders in the country in order to form a strong base for the small and medium-sized businesses and scale-up projects, while improving their contribution to economic diversification of the nation and encouraging them to expand and divert their activities and businesses in the fields of industrial, trade and services, and create an investment climate beneficial to their success.

Commenting on this occasion, the chief Executive of Officer of QDB, Mr. Abdulaziz Nasser Al-Khalifa, mentioned:
“We at Qatar Development Bank are proud and pleased to be hosting the national strategy for business incubators and business accelerators workshop, which marks the first of its kind in the region and the entire region as a whole, and is a step forward towards strengthening the development of the growing business sector in Qatar. This strategy was designed as a direct result of rigorous studies that indicated the available opportunities in the various economic sectors in the Qatari market and to identify ways to transform gaps into opportunities through innovative projects, which works on implementing and execute innovative ideas that benefit all the sector sectors in the country. In addition, QDB will act as a major support for all business incubators and business accelerators, and will be the primary reference for both companies and institutions. The national strategy for business incubators and business accelerators will be the road map for the success, growth and prosperity of leading businesses in an appropriate and encouraging investment climate, contributing effectively to the diversification of the Qatar economy, which is in line with achieving Qatar’s National Vision 2030.'

Furthermore, this strategy aims at developing a plan that will keep pace with the expansion of  entrepreneurship in the Qatari and global market by identifying opportunities for developing the system and new business incubation programs and providing the necessary support to entrepreneurs by supporting creative ideas in the field of entrepreneurship and transforming them into innovative projects, that willplay a leading role in the market and a major contribution to the diversification and prosperity of the national Qatari economy in various sectors. Moreover, the strategy works on encouraging the SME sector by providing them access to regional and global markets.

Meaningful discussions and participations of various ideas and interpretations were observed during the workshop, after a demonstration offered by the team from Qatar Development Bank. In the same context, global consultants and experts, who contributed to the development of international entrepreneurial systems, provided valuable information regarding best international practices in leading business incubation.

Qatar Development bank strives to provide comprehensive and necessary support to accelerate the growth of Qatar’s private sector and play its pivotal role in meeting the economic diversification and contribute towards a sustainable and competitive economy.