The Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development has launched a programme designed to enable small and medium enterprises leverage e-commerce technologies to help them to grow their businesses.
The inaugural E-Commerce Acceleration Programme is a training initiative that will help entrepreneurs to develop their e-commerce platforms, with experts from the sector providing mentorship, the Abu Dhabi agency said on Wednesday.
Participants in the programme will be given the opportunity to demonstrate the solutions they would develop. Those who show a "high level of expertise and scaleability" will be invited to a special eight-week course extension, Alia Al Mazrouei, chief executive of the Khalifa Fund, said.
"Understanding digital has become a prerequisite to entering the market, whereas in previous times it was only for a select few of innovative businesses," she said. Ms Al Mazrouei added that the entity will "equip entrepreneurs with digital resources and industry insights" through such programmes.
E-commerce grew exponentially during the Covid-19 pandemic and that growth has continued as consumers tap into its convenience and the variety it offers.
The UAE's e-commerce sector is forecast to grow by 60 per cent to more than $8 billion by 2025, from 2021, according to a recent report by Euromonitor International.
Globally, the market is expected to hit $55.6 trillion by 2027 at a compound annual growth rate of about 27.4 per cent, from an estimated $13tn in 2021, data from US-based research firm Imarc Group showed.
SMEs, meanwhile, make up a significant portion of businesses in the UAE. Latest government data shows that SMEs represent more than 94 per cent of all companies operating in the country, with 73 per cent in the wholesale and retail sector.
The growth in earnings of UAE SMEs is almost on par with the global average of 46 per cent, up from 39 per cent last year, with two-thirds of them saying they have recovered to pre-pandemic levels, the Euromonitor study found.
Applicants to the Khalifa Fund's new project, a five-day programme that will start on September 21, will be required to meet strict criteria to be accepted. These include enterprise size, product type, previous experience with e-commerce and overall business expertise, among others.
Registrations are currently open and will be accepted until September 14.
The programme will help participants to deliver real results that affect their bottom line, generate profit, expand brand exposure and boost customer engagement, the fund said.
"The retail space has seen substantial changes in recent years, with the evolution of digital technologies and their integration into the retail market," Ms Al Mazrouei said.
"It’s now essential for entrepreneurs to understand how to apply e-commerce practices to their businesses."
The Khalifa Fund was created in 2007 and is an independent, non-profit economic development agency of the government of Abu Dhabi to support SMEs.
Its has also been reaching out beyond the borders of the Emirates. In August, the Khalifa Fund announced that it will provide $30 million in financing to SMEs in Kenya, as part of efforts to support the capital Nairobi's programmes to boost the economy and create jobs.
Other Abu Dhabi agencies have also rolled out initiatives to help entrepreneurs. Last month, Group 42, the artificial intelligence and cloud computing company backed by sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, launched a $10bn fund that will invest in emerging technologies.
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BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
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Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
THREE
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Quick facts on cancer
- Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide, after cardiovascular diseases
- About one in five men and one in six women will develop cancer in their lifetime
- By 2040, global cancer cases are on track to reach 30 million
- 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries
- This rate is expected to increase to 75 per cent by 2030
- At least one third of common cancers are preventable
- Genetic mutations play a role in 5 per cent to 10 per cent of cancers
- Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved annually by implementing the right health
strategies
- The total annual economic cost of cancer is $1.16 trillion
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
RESULT
Arsenal 2
Sokratis Papastathopoulos 45 4'
Eddie Ntkeiah 51'
Portsmouth 0
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
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Torque: 220Nm @ 1,480rpm (Cooper) / 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (Cooper S)
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Fuel consumption, combined: 4.8L to 5.4L / 100km
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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Jewel of the Expo 2020
252 projectors installed on Al Wasl dome
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550 tonnes of moulded steel were raised last year to cap the dome
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Stands taller than the leaning tower of Pisa
Steel trellis dome is one of the largest single structures on site
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Al Wasl means connection in Arabic
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
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MEFCC information
Tickets range from Dh110 for an advance single-day pass to Dh300 for a weekend pass at the door. VIP tickets have sold out. Visit www.mefcc.com to purchase tickets in advance.
UAE tour of the Netherlands
UAE squad: Rohan Mustafa (captain), Shaiman Anwar, Ghulam Shabber, Mohammed Qasim, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Chirag Suri, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Mohammed Naveed, Amjad Javed, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fixtures: Monday, first 50-over match; Wednesday, second 50-over match; Thursday, third 50-over match
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