Business incubator for British firms begun by Dubai SME

Dubai SME, the government agency responsible for supporting small and medium-sized businesses, is initiating a new business incubator to support British firms to expand their operations in the Emirates.

The initiative is established in partnership with the British Centers for Business (BCB).

The incubator intends to encourage British businesses to work in ‘new and developing sectors’ such as IT, eCommerce, digital marketing, smart applications and logistics and will improve the reputation of Dubai as a regional and global investment and entrepreneurship destination.

“We are pleased to add BCB to our accredited incubators and business accelerators and eventually bring them into the Dubai Business Incubator Network (DBIN). The BCB incubator will add significantly to the achievements of other accredited incubators in Dubai in addition to strengthening the partnership between innovative British companies and our local start-ups.”

Dubai SME has an accreditation scheme for incubators and business accelerators through its Hamdan Innovation Incubator.

To date, seven specialist business incubators have been introduced to DBIN by Dubai SME in various sectors such as digital technology and robotics, architecture, energy sustainability, water, building materials, transportation and waste management.

Mr. Al Janahi said, “We are confident that the next stage will witness varied entrepreneurial initiatives across multiple sectors in addition to new investment opportunities in the local market.”

For several UK companies, Dubai has become an ideal investment destination. As per the Dubai Investment Development Agency, the emirate drew approximately $326 billion in foreign direct investment during the first half of 2020. Out of this 8 percent is contributed by UK.

Joe Hepworth, chief executive BCB, said, “We have been working closely with Dubai Economy, helping more than 45 companies become established in Dubai and generating more than Dh400 million in trade with the UK.”

“We are delighted to become a formal part of the Dubai SME incubator scheme as the next step in the BCB’s development in Dubai,” Mr. Hepworth added.

The BCB incubator includes a range of industries, including energy, retail, financial services, healthcare, education and foods & beverages, along with technology firms.

It will organize practice sessions on market growth and encourage networking as well as information sharing between its members, specialists and Emirati start-ups as part of the contract with Dubai SME. It will support emerging projects to develop and create partnership.