SMEs play an important role in the development and growth of the economy. And she advocates the creation of more free trade zones. The free trade zone at Jebel Ali is the most spectacular example of how the spirit of entrepreneurship can percolate from large international companies to small and medium-sized companies. Mohammed Al Fahim, chairman and managing director of the Abu Dhabi-based Al Fahim Group, agrees that governments must streamline and modernise the commercial rulebook if SMEs are to blossom. But perhaps more importantly, he argues that a fundamental change in attitude has to be fostered before GCC nationals embrace the spirit of entrepreneurial adventure.
People are afraid of venturing into the unknown.
They prefer to have a regular salary paid with minimum working hours. The more we educate people to rely on themselves, and be independent and have self esteem and strength of character, the more people will break away from the traditional job seeking situation and become independent decision makers. UAE Offsets Group, the government-backed economic development agency, is striving to speed up the process of change. We believe that small and medium-sized businesses are very important to the UAE economy. We have to look at ways of upgrading the environment for them.