31/12/2012
What have been the key achievements of Sharakah during 2011 and 2012 ?
In 2011, 7 projects were sanctioned with the amount invested of Rial Omani 491,679. These projects have created 26 additional job opportunities in the market. In 2012 Sharakah supported 10 additional projects with an investment amount exceeding Rial 520,000.
Further, we are now an ISO certified organization applying best practices to ensure that we serve the entrepreneurs in an efficient manner. Part of our contribution to capacity building and skills development, we have conducted 8 workshops titled "Dynamic Entrepreneurship" to more than 200 participants most of which are college students. The objective of the workshop is to develop a deeper understanding of cash flows statements and enlightening the participants of different factors that could affect business performance.
In its effort to equip aspiring entrepreneurs, Sharakah and Grant Thornton Abu Timam inked a deal on March 2012 to support the development of Small and Medium Enterprises in Oman, where we work closely to help entrepreneurs who are seeking to establish or grow their businesses to learn how to develop viable business plans.
Likewise, Sharakah signed an agreement with Jusoor, a corporate social responsibility entity targeted at developing the community in North Al Batinah Governorate.The objective is promoting leadership amongst Omanis in North Al Batinah Governorate and to contribute towards developing a positive impact in the targeted communities.
What are the key goals of Sharakah ?
Sharakah’s main objectives are to:
Support Oman’s vision 2020 to diversify the economy
Encourage the creation of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME’s)
Develop the entrepreneurial capacity of Omanis
Assist in creating sustainable SME’s
Create job opportunities for locals
Please give a brief overview of some Omani SMEs started recently with your support ?
Over the course of 13 years, Sharakah supported more than 50 businesses in different sectors and from different governorates in the Sultanate. Some of these businesses include Love at First Bite multi cuisine lounge in the Wilayat of Bowsher, Salim Al Mawaly Trading a Bricks Factory in The Willayat of Suwaiq, WadiSamailEquipments renting construction equipment in the Willayat of Samail, Mazoon Environmental & Technical Services in the Willayat of AsSeeb and many others.
What are your future plans for 2013 and beyond? What is your strategic plan for micro and SMEs ?
It is worth stating that Sharakah`s concentration is on Small to Medium size enterprises not Microbusiness. While the definition is debatable, we consider Micro business those which require an investment amount less than Rials 10,000 apart from other parameters.
We have an ambitions 5-Years strategy that looks at our internal operations as well as what we deliver to the SME`s. Indeed, we are planning to support more businesses not only financially but also through guidance, mentoring and consultation.
For instance, we are developing a Business Performance Monitoring Tool that will enable us to monitor the progress of businesses that we have supported and ensure that they are on the right track. This rigorous approach insures that we evaluate the business from all aspects including operations, finance, marketing, branding to name a few.
Along similar lines, we have signed an agreement with LightHouse Consultant to develop a tool that will help us asses the entrepreneurial capacity of applicants and would ensure that we bench mark aspiring entrepreneurs against clear criteria.
We will continue to deliver workshops on voluntary basis to students on how to manage business and educate them of the responsibilities that it brings.
Lately we have been active on various social channels (Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter), we plan to engage more with youngsters and help spread more awareness about entrepreneurship and our services.
Further, we are working on introducing a scheme that is Sharia compliant to serve the needs of entrepreneurs who are seeking sharia complaint financial support. In fact our equity scheme "in principle" follows the guidelines of Islamic finance.
Do you think bureaucratic red tape and others hurdles are challenges in start-up ventures ?
Lets say they are part of other challenges that SME`s face. SMEs generally face common challenges. Some are related to investment environment and incentives, and other are related to managerial capacity of the Owners themselves.
I classify the challenges into three general categories
Cultural Challenges
These are a set of challenges related to factors in the community that have an effect on nurturing entrepreneurship.
Challenges related to the Business Environment
These challenges are related to the policies and regulations that govern the operation of business entities in the Sultanate as well as the support provided by large private and public sector organizations.
Challenges Related to the Entrepreneurial Capacity of Locals
The last set of challenges looks at whether locals have the entrepreneurial skills and capabilities. Financial institutions claim that the quality of business plans coupled with the skills of the business owners that represent them ispoor.