Dubai SME100 rankings Nominations up 171 percent

Dubai SME on Tuesday announced that nearly 3,000 small and medium enterprises have been nominated for the 2013 Dubai SME100 rankings, with their estimated output pegged at over Dh53 billion.

The nominations represent a 171 per cent increase over the 1,092 SMEs nominated for the 2011 ranking. Sector-wise, 53 per cent of SMEs nominated are from the trading sector, 36 per cent from services and 11 per cent from manufacturing.

“The Government of Dubai has launched various initiatives aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and SME development under its SME five-year plan. This commitment to promote entrepreneurship and SMEs is in the DNA of Dubai, supported and led by our socio-economic stability, openness and visionary leadership. Dubai has moved to the next level of growth, and in our renewed dynamism and development outlook, SMEs play a strategically significant role in creating new value-add to the economy of Dubai and the UAE,” Sami Al Qamzi, director-general of Dubai Department of Economic Development, said in a statement.

“Over 95 per cent of the businesses in Dubai today are small and medium enterprises. Together, SMEs constitute the largest reserve of knowledge, innovation and human capital in the UAE as well as a significant contributor to the nation’s GDP. The Dubai SME 100 initiative provides an added incentive for SMEs to keep growing. They will definitely feel encouraged to think outside accepted parameters, push their creativity and thus achieve their unique goals.”

Dubai SME100 identifies the top-performing SMEs in Dubai to help groom them into bigger and more sustainable enterprises, and support them through their growth into larger, internationally-oriented companies.

Post ranking, the SMEs are given specialised capability development training in such critical areas as investment development, corporate governance, valuation, legal support and risk management. The ranking is valid for two years.

“We are delighted at the substantial increase seen in Dubai SME100 applications compared to 2011. It shows the level of interest in the ranking and its growing market recognition. We hope that more SMEs will apply for the ranking as it will help them gain greater value in the market, as demonstrated by the 2011 batch of Dubai SME100 companies,” Dubai SME CEO Abdul Baset Al Janahi said.

 

 

Source: Khaleej Times