Sheikh Majid Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, opened the Dubai Entrepreneurship Academy, a first-of-its-kind initiative from Dubai SME, the agency of the Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai on Tuesday.

Dubai’s efforts to take its SME leadership to the next level will be ably complemented by the academy as it will offer innovative training to entrepreneurial talent across the region, eventually enhancing the role of SMEs in economic development. The will lead to a stronger support system for SME owners and future entrepreneurs and ensure that they have the necessary skills and experience to succeed.

First of its kind in the region, the academy aims to provide existing and potential entrepreneurs with the skills and knowledge they need to become future business leaders. An evolving calendar of programs will ensure that the academy accomplishes its vision of creating a generation of entrepreneurs capable of leading successful projects around the globe.

The opening ceremony also witnessed Sheikh Majid honoring the first batch of 104 graduates from the Academy. The new graduates included 57 males and 47 females who successfully completed the Entrepreneurship Diploma and the Professional Hospitality & Restaurant Management Certificate programs offered at the academy.

The Entrepreneurship Diploma program, which attracted a remarkable response in its first year, is a practice-oriented program that enables graduates to advance their entrepreneurial ideas through successive stages, from feasible business plan to solid enterprise. The program provides students with the skill and tools to evaluate their own business ideas and their market potential and devise sound financial and business development strategies.

Sami Al-Qamzi, director general of DED; Abdul Baset Al-Janahi, CEO of Dubai SME and other senior officials were present at the ceremony.