The winners’ names and their projects were announced at an event held at Bait Al Zubair on February 3, attended by board members of The Zubair Corporation and executives from the Zubair Group of companies. Dignitaries and top officials from both public and private organisations that support small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurship in Oman also attended the event.
This is the third edition of the Direct Support Programme organised by Zubair SEC, the social responsibility initiative of The Zubair Corporation. The programme has been providing support and mentorship to high-potential young entrepreneurs and business owners for the last three years.
Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme 2016 saw the inclusion of two new categories. One category was added to promote the concept of social entrepreneurship. Individuals pursuing promising social entrepreneurship projects were selected under this category. The other category added provides an opportunity for those pursuing wholesale business for a joint project with Oasis Logistics, one of The Zubair Group companies
This year’s ten winners of the Direct Support Programme are:
Ayoub Saleh Khalifa Al Shaaili (Shubbak for Weddings E-Services)
Khamis Rashid Khamis Al Sawai (Khamis Rashid Khamis Al Sawai Trading Projects)
Zubaida Hamood Abdullah Al Harthi (Al Qabas Leading Projects)
Aliya Abdullah Hamed Al Nabhani (Al Rawaya Al Shamika ENT)
Abdullah Ali Al Mulla (Gulf Emaar)
Ali Said Abdullah Al Rashdi (Muaawana Trading)
Mohsin Saif Dhahi Al Manji (Zahrat Al Naqaa for Development)
Mohammed Ali Salim Al Balushi (Zwaya Al Bait Trading LCC)
Mahmood Khamis Humaid Al Oraimi (Moudy United)
Naser Said Mohammed Al Hajri (Modern Nature World)
Commenting on the programme, Hani Muhammad Al Zubair, Board Member of The Zubair Corporation and Chairman of Zubair Automotive Group said, “the strategy and vision of The Zubair Corporation towards supporting business entrepreneurs and owners of small enterprises is derived from the directions of His Majesty Sultan Qabous bin Said and the government’s interest in this vital sector. The Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme is but one of many services that the Centre offers its members and we will keep moving forward in improving those services and diversify them towards the sustainability of the Centre’s offerings and productivity in serving the youth of this precious country.” He added, “since the conception of Zubair SEC, we put all effort to set this programme as an exemplary model for sustainable successful initiatives; we were very aware at the time that achieving such an objective comes through the very success of the Centre’s members”.
He also added, “in every new round of the Direct Support Programme comes new strategic additions that add value to the Programme and its members; this year we have dedicated a seat for a social entrepreneurship project as a first of its kind initiative in the Sultanate. We have also, in cooperation with Oasis Logistics, one of The Zubair Group companies, assigned a seat for a wholesale business project. And as we are happy with the results of the Programme so far, we renew our commitment to proceed forward in supporting Omani entrepreneurs to have a positive role in the development of our beloved country”.
Hussam Muhammad Al Zubair, Board Member of the Zubair Corporation gave the opening speech at the event emphasizing the accomplishments achieved by the Direct Support Programme in its previous two rounds through small enterprises; he also commended the positive competitiveness that the Programme has witnessed amongst applicants. He also stressed on the importance of the competitive values showcased by applicants throughout all the evaluation process and that all applicants are winners of the experience, encouraging them to keep persevering towards achieving their objectives, and to make all use of the services provided to them by Zubair SEC. He highlighted the fact that the Centre offers its services to all members whether winners of the Direct Support Programme or not.
Muna Khusaibi, Founder of Kidani, and winner of the Direct Support Programme last year gave a speech on behalf of members of the Programme in all its previous rounds; she also expressed her gratitude to Zubair SEC and its team and encouraged her colleagues and fellow entrepreneurs to move forward and benefit from the offered advantages and services through their membership in the Centre. She also commended the importance of such successful initiatives as Zubair SEC in contributing to the success and development of entrepreneurs and owners of small enterprises.
The Zubair SEC Direct Support Programme witnessed a four-stage evaluation. Once applications were evaluated, applicants went through interviews and their projects went through a thorough review process. The number of applicants for Zubair SEC Direct Support Programme grew up from 94 in 2015 to 214 in 2016. A total number of 122 applicants were shortlisted for the first round of interview in 2016 while 63 were shortlisted in 2015. In 2016, 70 business enterprises were shortlisted in the second round of review while 2015 saw 40 business enterprises being shortlisted. With new categories being added to the 2016 programme, 12 were shortlisted for the second round of review under the social enterprise category and 13 in the wholesale business by Oasis category.
As a run-up to the winners’ announcement, 18 business enterprises, 4 social enterprises and 6 wholesale businesses by Oasis Logistics were announced as finalists.
It may be noted that in 2015, 22 business enterprises were selected after the third review and 15 were selected as finalists.
The two previous editions of the Direct Support Programme received huge response and registered remarkable success.
Considered one of the most important contests in the field of entrepreneurship, Zubair SEC’s Direct Support Programme aims to create a spirit of positive competition between its members to qualify as winners.
Personality, business plan, product/service specifications, targeted market specifications, financial considerations, innovation and social impact are criteria considered while selecting the winners. The winning projects should have a clear strategic plan and feasibility study done which reflects the owners’ willingness to apply best business practices with the support of Zubair SEC.
Although all members of Zubair SEC benefit from advisory and training services, financial facilitation, and support, only exceptional projects are selected as winners of its Direct Support Programme. The purpose of selecting winners is to create healthy competitiveness among members and to encourage them to work harder to reach their goal.
Zubair SEC will provide updates about the new winners of the Direct Support Programme and its services in general on its twitter account @zubair_sec and website www.zubairsec.org