FORSAH GIVES SAUDI ENTREPRENEURS MUCH-NEEDED BOOST

Saudis are eager to try their hand at entrepreneurship and keen to go out on their own in their careers, according to the findings of a new report.

The Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) recently reported that 140,000 people have registered in an e-services programme for entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), as part of its 9/10th programme.

The 9/10th programme, which was launched in August 2016, offers online platforms to transform the kingdom’s work culture by promoting and supporting entrepreneurship and SMEs, while helping to create new jobs in innovative ways.

“Services provided by the online platforms are an interactive guide for entrepreneurs at all stages of their start-up projects, financing solutions that serve viable enterprises, services and applications for managing, developing, and operating SMEs, and data and information that help entrepreneurs and enterprises in making important business decisions,” HRDF said.

The programme is part of HRDF’s Vision 2030 reform plan and the NationalTransformation Program 2020. Saudi SMEs account for only 20% of the kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP), compared to 70% contributed by small enterprises in developed economies.

HRDF’s broad mandate is to create an ecosystem that nurtures human talent, and realise participants’ potential to either become an entrepreneur or get hired in the private sector.

HRDF also announced that 7,500 SMEs have joined Forsah.sa, a portal that enables entrepreneurs and small businesses to bid on an estimated SAR 381 million worth of projects – of which SAR 72 million has been approved to purchase services.

The portal also connects buyers and vendors across the kingdom and allows buyers to submit their purchase requests online, on which approved SMEs can bid.

Employers and individuals with technical specialties or other fields have been encouraged by HRDF to register with the Forsah platform.

“The portal offers a number of platforms including Tojjar, APPWEB, Forsah, Bahr, Kanaf, ATWAR, ZADD and EMADAD with the aim of changing the work culture among individuals and the society through encouraging and supporting entrepreneurship and SMEs, as well as enabling entrepreneurs to create jobs from those start-ups,” HRDF said.

Additionally, the fund also offers an interactive guide that helps entrepreneurs throughout their growth phases from inception to delivery as lucrative enterprises can explore financing options that help them grow their business.

Moreover, HRDF provides services and applications that help SMEs to run, develop and operate their enterprises, as well as providing data to assist them in their decision-making.

The program also provides start-up accelerator services that aim to enhance business ideas and provide guidance, mentorship and consultancy to bring their ideas to fruition.

Credit facilities to the micro, small and medium enterprises saw a 6.2% increase in the first quarter to reach SAR 113.2 billion, its highest growth rate in at least five quarters, according to latest available data from the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA).

Credit facilities provided by banks to medium enterprises grew 5.91%to reach SAR 79.1 billion, while credit to small enterprises saw a 3% increase to SAR 22.9 billion. Only micro enterprises saw a 22.5% contraction to SAR 2.86 billion.

Credit facilities by finance companies surged 17.1% during the quarter, compared to the previous period to reach SAR 8.1 billion.

On the start-up front, Red Sea Farms, an agriculture technology spinoff company from KAUST specialising in saltwater greenhouse technology, secured USD 1.9 million of co-investment from the KAUST Innovation Fund and Research Products Development Company (RPDC).

Red Sea Farms aims to solve the food security needs of the region, combining engineering and plant science to grow saltwater-tolerant crops in greenhouses cooled using saltwater. In Red Farm’s saltwater greenhouse, 80% to 90% of freshwater is substituted with saltwater, reducing fresh water and energy requirements tenfold.

"The Middle East is one of the most water scarce regions of the world. Here, we often rely on unsustainable sources of water for irrigation, such as groundwater, which is being rapidly depleted, or desalinated water," according to Mark Tester, Red Sea Farms co-founder and KAUST Professor of Plant Science.

"Desalinated water requires large amounts of energy to produce, which is costly – at least USD 1 for every cubic metre, and [this] has a high environmental impact."