Central to their efforts that aim at developing the SME sector in the Sultanate, BankDhofar and Maisarah Islamic Banking Services supported the 1st Arab Forum for Women Entrepreneurs that kicked off recently at Crowne Plaza Hotel in Salalah under the patronage of H.E. Sayyid Mohammed bin Sultan al Busaidy, Minister of State and Governor of Dhofar.
The 3-day event was organised by Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the Governorate of Dhofar and it brought together women entrepreneurs from the Arab world, as well as investors, representatives of the public sector, financial institutions, and participants focusing on SME and entrepreneurship industry. The forum highlighted opportunities and challenges facing women entrepreneurs, in addition to various key topics including marketing and role of incubators in supporting the start-ups.
Speaking at the opening of the forum, Abdul Hakeem Al Ojaili, BankDhofar’s Acting CEO, stressed on the bank’s ongoing efforts to support the development of the SME scene across Oman. He noted: “The SME sector is a vital contributor to the growth and diversification of the country’s GDP and it plays a key role in the development of the national economy. We have always been committed to support entrepreneurs, encouraging creativity and innovation, and participating in initiatives that accelerate the development of the sector.”
The event provided a platform to highlight issues relevant to women entrepreneurs in the Arab world and potential solutions to overcome such challenges. BankDhofar and Maisarah’s participation in this convention comes in line with BankDhofar and its Islamic window’s comprehensive vision to contribute to the overall development of the country through supporting small and medium-sized businesses and providing a healthy environment for them to grow, network and exchange expertise.
BankDhofar is committed to boost the growth of SME businesses across the Sultanate. Aspiring to be the bank of choice for SME customers, catering to their financial needs and banking requirements, BankDhofar also works constantly to understand the market trends and it offers professional advisory to enable SME to manage their financial requirements. The bank invests in building an adequate infrastructure to support SMEs nationwide with a specialised team whose core responsibility is to provide financial and advisory services to SME customers.
BankDhofar offers a diverse range of products, services and financial solutions that are tailored to fulfil the needs and requirements of start-ups and SME customers, including bid bonds, real estate financing, capital asset financing, bill discounting, contract financing, call account, fixed deposit account and current account with exclusive benefits for entrepreneurs. Earlier, the bank joined hands with the top business consulting firm Lighthouse Consulting Services (LCS) to provide outsourced accounting solutions to all SMEs registered with BankDhofar for an affordable nominal cost. These services include budgeting, accounting, financial and management reporting, profit and loss statements and balance sheet preparation.