Entrepreneurship Among Emiratis Strong, Fear Of Failure Main Barrier - Khalifa Fund Expert

Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development engages Emirati entrepreneurial spirit at Tawdheef Recruitment Show

Entrepreneurship capabilities among Emiratis has never been stronger, but a fear of failure holds them back from taking the next step to launch their own businesses, an expert from the UAE’s leading organisation supporting entrepreneurism said.

Dr. Halah El-Sokari, Advisor to the CEO of the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, said that starting a business can be a huge and daunting task for young Emiratis, and is likely to impact the direction of one’s life in a major way.

“The typical entrepreneurial mindset in the UAE is that most Emiratis believe entrepreneurship is a good career choice and there is a belief that they have the ‘perceived capabilities’ to start a new business,” said Dr. El-Sokari, a speaker at the Emiratisation Summit, currently taking place alongside the Tawdheef Recruitment Show at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.

“However not enough take the necessary steps to actually venture into an entrepreneurial path, which may be due to a fear of failure which is highly prevalent amongst some UAE Nationals.”

The Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development took part in Tawdheef to add to the current 157 employees within the organisation, while bestowing upon thousands of Emirati would be entrepreneurs the ins and outs of starting up their own business in the UAE.

Established in Abu Dhabi in 2007 with a total capital investment of AED2 billion, the Khalifa Fund helps develop small to medium enterprises via dedicated training and funding programmes, creating a generation of UAE National entrepreneurs.

With four different funding programmes, the organisation has approved the financial support of 380 individual projects, valued at AED600 million, and receives between 5-8 applications daily from Emiratis seeking training, funding or advice on how to launch their own business.

Dr. El-Sokari said that most of the entrepreneurial activity among UAE Nationals takes place between the 25-34 year range, reflecting the maturity and analysing process it takes before they decide on whether starting a new business is right for them.

“Starting a business is a huge step to take and it is important to take the time to think about the reality and the consequences of such a decision,” added El Sokari. “Those assessing the possibility of venturing into entrepreneurship need to assess and define exactly what they hope to achieve on a number of levels – personal, professional and financial.”

The Tawdheef Recruitment Show, concluding today (31 January) hosts more than 100 government and private organisations looking to meet thousands of Emirati job-seekers and make a quick start towards their goals of achieving Emiratisation targets for 2013.

More than 2,500 immediately vacant positions were offered at the show across various industries, including government, finance, healthcare, insurance, retail, tourism and hospitality, energy, industrial, media, recruitment, defense and security, IT, telecoms, transport and logistics.

Major exhibitors taking part this year included the Presidential Guard (titanium sponsor), National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi Police, and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (platinum sponsors); ADNOC and Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority (gold sponsors); Etihad Airways and Khalifa Fund (silver sponsors), and registration sponsor Abu Dhabi Airports Company.

The eighth edition of the Tawdheef Recruitment Show, organised by Informa Exhibitions, will return to Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) from 3-6 February, 2014.

Emirate:  Abu Dhabi

Date: Jan 31, 2013

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