Ahlam Al Ahmad: The program aims to enhance participants’ capabilities in innovation and sustainable production while promoting the highest standards of quality and competitiveness.
The Ministry of Community Empowerment has concluded the first phase of the “Entrepreneurs from Emirati Families” program, launched in collaboration with the Ministry of Economy and Tourism, the New Economy Academy, Majra National CSR Fund, Emirates Foundation, and Neol. The first cohort graduated with 50 participants, including owners of existing businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas.
The program is part of the initiatives under the “Year of the Family” and aligns with the “The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World” initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. It reflects the UAE’s strategic vision of transitioning “from support to empowerment” in line with the objectives of the UAE Centennial 2071 towards building “a more cohesive society.”
Ahlam Al Ahmad, Director of the Social and Economic Empowerment Department at the Ministry of Community Empowerment, stated that the program aims to train and empower 1,000 entrepreneurs from productive Emirati families over five years, with 200 participants enrolled annually. The initiative is designed to help participants transform their talents and skills into sustainable, high quality, and market competitive businesses.
She explained that the first phase brought together five specialised trainers in entrepreneurship, self-development, and the economic, financial, and technology sectors. Participants completed an intensive six day training program totalling 24 hours of practical and theoretical learning aimed at strengthening their entrepreneurial capabilities and enhancing their readiness to confidently enter the market.
Al Ahmad added that the program focused on empowering participants with knowledge economy skills and enabling them to manage their businesses according to the highest standards of quality and competitiveness. It also aimed to strengthen their capabilities in innovation, continuous development, sustainable production, and navigating market challenges.
The program covered a broad range of topics, including entrepreneurship fundamentals, growth mindset development, identifying investment opportunities, and building scalable business models. It also introduced participants to the UAE’s regulatory framework, including licensing procedures, labour laws, and intellectual property regulations. Additional modules addressed marketing strategies, competitor analysis, home based order management, compliance requirements, delivery services, budgeting, tax regulations, and effective pitching and promotion techniques through hands on applications.
Participants were grouped according to the nature of their businesses, spanning sectors such as food and health products, textiles and apparel, beauty products, handicrafts, and industrial and imported goods. Upcoming phases of the program will focus on strategic sectors including tourism, agriculture and agri-tech, food industries, fintech, and transport services.
The program reflects the Ministry’s commitment to fostering an environment that advances social and economic innovation and strengthening the competitiveness of entrepreneurship and small and medium enterprises by empowering Emirati families to transform their ideas into sustainable ventures that support economic development, social stability, and self-reliance.
20 May 2026