DUBAI — As part of efforts to assist SME growth in the emirates, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry launched its “Guidelines for Enhancing SME Finance” during a seminar held at its head office Sunday. The seminar, held in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy, sought to highlight efforts aimed at reducing the gap between supply and demand of SME finance. It provided SMEs with a unique opportunity to learn what essentials are required when applying for financing, how to maximize the effectiveness of an application, and speak to bank representatives on the spot. Speaking on behalf of Dubai Chamber, Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman, said that enhancing SMEs' access to finance was an effective way of ensuring Dubai's continued development as an international trading hub. “SMEs represent over 90 percent of Dubai businesses and they play an essential role in building a competitive private sector and contribute significantly to employment and economic activity in Dubai and the UAE,” he said. “Despite their integral role in Dubai's economy many of our SME members continue to face difficulties securing financing at sustainable rates. In fact, the UAE's total bank lending to SME's is around 3.85 percent, when its target is 24.3 percent, so addressing this issue has been a primary task for Dubai Chamber,” Al Ghurair said. The seminar was a culmination of work over the past year and a half and served as an ideal platform for Dubai's public and private sectors to discuss solutions to the current challenges SMEs face securing financing. “We are delighted to launch our ‘Guidelines for Enhancing SME Finance'. It is a valuable resource for the business community and will help SMEs better understand the requirements of applying for finance. We hope that by providing clarity for SMEs we can help them become more successful in their applications,” he added. Mohammed Al Shihhi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy, delivering the keynote speech, said SMEs contribute an estimated 40-46 percent of nominal GDP for Dubai and more than 60 percent of GDP of the UAE. He said SMEs host the majority of employment opportunities in Dubai and the UAE, and that these enterprises provide 86 percent of the employment in the private sector. “Unfortunately, the banks' focus on big loans for big corporations is also affecting Government efforts to encourage private business as a step towards reducing unemployment among Emiratis,” Al Shihhi said. “The Ministry of Economy is aware of the immense potential and contribution of SMEs to national growth and is making all the effort to support this sector. In this context, it will be the Ministry's effort to launch the SME Law at the earliest... The Ministerial Committee has just approved the law draft,” he added.— WAM
