Sayyid Bilarab to preside over launch of investment and startups forum

Muscat: His Highness Sayyid Bilarab bin Haitham Al Said, Honorary President of the Omani Promising Startups Programme will preside over the launch of the activities of investment and startups forum, organised by the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Development Authority in cooperation with a number of government entities at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre on Monday.

The two-day forum is aimed at spreading the culture of emerging companies based on innovation and advanced technologies.

It is also aimed at availing international expertise in the field and widening marketing horizons for the emerging companies at the regional and international levels. Besides, the forum will strive to support the youth and create innovative finance solutions for this sector.

The forum will create opportunities for Omani startups (emerging companies) for obtaining finance and for development of their systems and will identify the initiatives supporting such emerging companies.

The forum will start with a session titled, ‘The future of entrepreneurship and startups’ and a discussion on the three pillars of the forum, namely, management of startups, investment in startups, the best successful stories  of startups at the local, regional and international levels.

The second day of the forum will include a session on incubators and business accelerators and a workshop on establishment of private investment funds and investment in startups, among other issues.

The forum will also see an accompanying exhibition of emerging companies with the participation of sixty emerging companies operating in various fields and showcasing them before investors. The second day of the forum will also see the signing of a number of deals and agreements between the emerging companies and investing entities.

The forum which is one of the initiatives of the Omani Promising Startups Programme unveiled by the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Development Authority in November 2022 with strategic partners, and includes the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology; the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, the Ministry of Economy, the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Development Authority and ITHCA Group.

The forum will see the participation of a number of regional and international specialists and experts in the field of investment in emerging companies established on innovation and advanced technology besides the participation of owners of Omani emerging companies.