JEDDAH, 26 February 2004 — The Saudi Entrepreneurship Development Institute (SEDI) has just launched its first course at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry (JCCI) to train young Saudis as business persons. The course is conducted in collaboration with JCCI’s Small and Medium Support Center, and is sponsored by the National Commercial Bank.
Speaking on the occasion, Sobhi A. Batterjee, CEO of the Saudi German Hospital Group and also of SEDI, expressed pleasure that SEDI has been able to organize the program. The organization had been set up as a non-profit body, he said, and had been established with technical support from UNIDO. “We have acquired the technology from UNIDO, and this has been applied in most of the developing countries. Today they have managed the problems of unemployment and emerged as strong sustained economies. The evidence is in Korea, Malaysia, India and other Western developed economies. I have seen these changes during business visits,” he said.
The course being attended by 40 people - 30 men and 10 women. The participants were selected after tests. The training program lasts a month duration.
SEDI and UNIDO work on the principle that, contrary to the general impression that those who want to start a business need to be born into a business family, entrepreneurs can be developed by training. Anybody could acquire the necessary traits and characteristics. Under the program at JCCI, SEDI hopes to facilitate in developing what it calls a Bankable Business Plan, linking future businessmen with financing through a tie-up with the NCB, The Centennial Fund and other national funding agencies. SEDI plans to follow up for at least a year on those who have gone through the course to see how they fare in business, Batterjee said. He thanked all agencies involved for supporting the training program.
Dr. Shakil Ahmed Habib, assistant professor King Abdul Aziz University, welcomed the gathering. Saud Annawalla, general manager JCCI, spoke on the scope of the partnership and the challenges in developing Small and Medium Business in the Kingdom. He also highlighted the scheme of Centennial Fund and that of the Abdul Latif Jameel in providing funds and support to candidates. Professor V. B. Nanda Gopal, a consultant with SEDI, gave a brief outline of the course.