The Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development (Khalifa Fund) and eBay’s partnership aims to further support Abu Dhabi’s e-commerce ecosystem and support Abu Dhabi’s efforts to assist companies in accessing international markets through the e-Empower initiative. The partnership will see Abu Dhabi-based SMEs and medium and large enterprises gain a variety of tools to create growth and encourage Abu Dhabi SMEs to venture into the global exportation of goods and services.
eBay toolbox
With eBay’s involvement with e-Empower, small businesses will receive a tool box with a guide and best practices to selling on eBay as an independent seller, 200 free listings, and a unique offer for higher selling limits. Medium to large enterprises will be eligible for a personal training program with eBay experts, higher selling limits, complementary eBay store subscription for a quarter, an integration subsidy and marketing benefits.
Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development and Chairman of the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, stated, “As the leading SME development organisation in the UAE, Khalifa Fund is constantly looking to establish partnerships with industry leading entities such as eBay, who will provide invaluable knowledge and an abundance of resources to e-Empower. Khalifa Fund remain committed towards enhancing all aspects of Abu Dhabi’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, with specific emphasis on providing further support to the functionalities of international exportation.”
Aiding international exports
Al Hammadi added, “e-Empower has been amongst the most influential and impactful initiatives that Khalifa Fund has ever launched, with hundreds of hours of guidance and a vast array of Abu Dhabi companies creating their own e-commerce stores; now Khalifa Fund are focusing on bringing further support to the framework in which Abu Dhabi companies can export their goods and trade with the wider world.”
Jenny Hui, General Manager of Global Emerging Markets at eBay, said, “We are thankful for the opportunity to cooperate with Khalifa Fund to support and grow SMEs in the UAE. As one of our target markets, we see great potential in the UAE and wish to assist local SMEs go global and ease their journey. With over 159 million buyers worldwide in 190 markets and 250 million searches a day, eBay opens the door to any local business to become a global player. Last year alone, we saw growth of over 28% of UAE sellers on eBay, and we plan to continue and extend our support to local businesses, via different growth and support programs customised for every relevant business.”
e-Empower
e-Empower was initially launched in September 2020 with the aim of supporting Abu Dhabi entrepreneurs to fully digitalise their businesses and help their overall ability to thrive in the digital economy. Since its inception, e-Empower has partnered with Amazon, Amazon Web Services, Akshaak and noon, which has seen over 1,200 SMEs optimise and develop their own e-commerce stores.
The Khalifa Fund recently launched a program that aims to give SMEs and startups access to specialist support in order to create greater impact.
