Bank Muscat, the flagship financial services provider in the Sultanate, gave a major boost to SME development initiatives by women entrepreneurs as the first Al Wathbah Businesswomen’s Awards were presented at a ceremony held at the bank’s head office in the presence of dignitaries and senior bank officials led by AbdulRazak Ali Issa, Chief Executive.
The top three winners of Al Wathbah Businesswomen’s Awards are Shatha Abdullah Al Jabri, owner of Meshan Dates and Sweets; Nadia Maqbool Al Lawati, owner of 23 Degrees North; and Jokha Al Hussaini, owner of Shumookh Engineering Consultancy.
The initiative, which comes as part of the bank’s ‘Let’s Do More’ vision and continued support to women empowerment initiatives, marks a clear progression of the well-defined strategy pursued by the bank in line with the directives of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said to support the SME sector and strengthen its role in the economic development of Oman.
AbdulRazak Ali Issa said: “Bank Muscat congratulates the enterprising women entrepreneurs for making a mark with successful business projects. We appreciate their determination and commitment to follow their business dreams and wish them greater success in serving the community as role models for the youth and other entrepreneurs. Complementing the government efforts to develop the SME sector, the support to SMEs and women empowerment initiatives stem from the bank’s commitment to create self-employment opportunities for youth who constitute more than 50 per cent of the country’s population.”
Al Wathbah Businesswomen’s Award set to become a major annual celebration is aimed at appreciating and recognising Omani women entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence in their business benefiting the community. Encouraging entrepreneurial skills and empowering Omani businesswomen, the award recognises businesswomen for playing an important role in contributing to the country’s economy.
Fatima Al Maskiry, AGM – SME Credit, Marketing and Regional Corporates, said: “Bank Muscat is proud to have initiated a series of innovative programmes benefiting SMEs. The bank is committed to meeting all the financial and service requirements of SMEs and we are happy that Al Wathbah Businesswomen’s Award sets a benchmark for business development initiatives by Omani women entrepreneurs. The award complements the series of initiatives launched as part of a comprehensive plan to support women entrepreneurs in Oman.”
The award jury members included AbdulRazak Ali Issa, Saleh Al Zakwani, Chairman of Apex Group of Publications; Sayyida Basma Al Said, owner of Whispers of Serenity, and Ilham Al Hamaid, Deputy General Manager – Large Corporates, Bank Muscat.
Shatha Abdullah Al Jabri, the winner, thanked Bank Muscat for the big support extended to women entrepreneurs in Oman. “I am deeply honoured to win this award which is a major boost for women entrepreneurs to embark on self-employment initiatives.”
In all, six finalists were shortlisted from the fields ranging from engineering, consultancy, health, handicrafts and traditional confectionary. The evaluation of the projects for the awards were based on the criteria of sustainability; creativity and innovation; leadership and commitment, financial strength and corporate social responsibility.
Aimed at strengthening the SME sector, the bank’s al Wathbah SME department offers a comprehensive suite of tailor-made finance solutions. A unique SME financing solution launched by the bank has helped entrepreneurs overcome a major challenge. al Wathbah SME non-collateral finance not requiring collateral guarantee is a bold step affirming the bank’s commitment to encouraging an entrepreneurial culture in Oman.
The bank regularly conducts workshops and seminars to equip SMEs to identify business opportunities and tackle challenges. Serving as building blocks for existing and prospective entrepreneurs, these initiatives assume importance in the backdrop of the priority accorded by the government to develop the SME sector in Oman.