(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Chosen entrepreneurs will be given preferential treatment in government services under a new programme developed by Riyada (earlier Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Development). This programme was one of five new initiatives announced at a press conference at Hormuz Grand Hotel on Monday.
Under the programme SMEs that meet the authority's criteria will be given an entitlement card which can be used to side-step queues and speed up work in government offices so that documents processes that normally take 'two months could take two weeks' said Khalid al Nabhani acting director of information technology at Riyada.
'This card distinguishes entrepreneurs and helps them in processing and easing their work with government agencies' said Khalifa al Abri Riyada's acting CEO.
In the future the cards may be used beyond just the government services mandate. They could qualify entrepreneurs for discounts on air fare hotels restaurants car rentals or even gifts such as flowers intended for business purposes.
Nabhani said up to 10000 cards would be awarded in 2015. Continued membership to the card will be subject to a yearly review to make sure that entrepreneurs still met the relevant criteria such as not holding a government job.
'Our goal is that the entrepreneur focuses on one company and works hard on it and develops it' Abri said.
The other programmes announced by Riyada are a new business centre a club for entrepreneurs land allotment and a specialised newsletter.
The new business centre will be a kind of an incubator. However this centre and the National Business Centre will complement each other said Khalfan al Khusaibi supervisor for incubators Riyada.
'We may incubate some projects that don't suit NBC's nature of work. The opposite is true as well' he said.
'We work at the same pace and our goal is the same: To develop SMEs.' The centre will be located at Riyada's headquarters in Ghala. The centre will have room for a total of 26 companies and agreements with nine firms were signed at the press conference.
On the entrepreneurs' club Nabhani said the building would provide an opportunity for businesspeople to hold meetings relax and exchange ideas. He said the organisation is trying to create a culture of cooperation among entrepreneurs rather than competition.
"It's a great place to bring entrepreneurs together' he said.
The club will be located at The Wave Muscat and will open during Q1 of 2015 Abri said.
For entrepreneurs involved in light manufacturing Riyada announced the allotment of land parcels at highly-discounted lease rates in Muscat North Batinah and Buraimi.
The space may be used for facilities such as workshops and assembly lines according to Ishaq al Shukaili industrial engineer at Riyada.
Awardees will own the rights of use for 20 years he said. Abry said similar allotments will be given in all governorates during 2015.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.