Officials from the Creative Zone and the Dubai Business Women Council launch the 'She Leads' programme to help develop 100 UAE start-ups led by women. Courtesy Dubai Chamber.
Officials from the Creative Zone and the Dubai Business Women Council launch the 'She Leads' programme to help develop 100 UAE start-ups led by women. Courtesy Dubai Chamber.
Officials from the Creative Zone and the Dubai Business Women Council launch the 'She Leads' programme to help develop 100 UAE start-ups led by women. Courtesy Dubai Chamber.
Officials from the Creative Zone and the Dubai Business Women Council launch the 'She Leads' programme to help develop 100 UAE start-ups led by women. Courtesy Dubai Chamber.

Dubai launches 'She Leads' programme to back women-led start-ups


Deena Kamel
  • English
  • Arabic

Dubai is starting the “She Leads” programme, an incubator and accelerator intended to help develop UAE start-ups that are led by women.

Business set-up consultancy Creative Zone and the Dubai Business Women Council partnered on the new project that will select 100 female entrepreneurs for a 10-week intensive training programme that will be held online, the Dubai Chamber said on Wednesday.

Nadine Halabi, business development manager of the Dubai Business Women Council, said the programme was intended to level the playing field by providing women with an equal opportunity to develop their skills and connect them to prospects and resources.

“Despite the rapid increase in the number of women-owned [companies] in recent years, women still face significant barriers to growth,” Ms Halabi said.

The small and medium-sized enterprise segment accounts for about 40 per cent of the UAE’s total gross domestic product, making it a vital sector for economic growth.

The International Monetary Fund said in July that the Covid-19 pandemic had a “disproportionate” effect on women around the world and threatened to set back their economic empowerment and widen existing gender disparities.

The Washington lender urged policymakers to adopt measures that would limit the pandemic’s “scarring effects” on women and remove legal barriers to their empowerment.

Gender disparities in entrepreneurship continue to “deplete the stock of new businesses and reduce economic potential” around the world, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor.

The “She Leads” programme aims to eliminate the barriers women face when starting and growing a business.

These include the lack of adequate access to finance, issues to do with legal rights, efforts to win over customers and a lack of relatable role models and mentors.

Women over the age of 21 who live in the UAE and have an existing business, are in the process of setting up a business or plan to begin one are eligible.

Participants will benefit from coaching, networking and learning opportunities, and the two most promising applicants will receive free business services.

“Business incubators and accelerators play an important role in the entrepreneurial ecosystem by not only offering training and services but also connecting business owners to opportunities and resources that will help them overcome various challenges that limit business development and growth,” said Lorenzo Jooris, chief executive of Creative Zone.

Programme entrants will be taught how to start, fund and grow a business. The course, which begins on September 22, will also focus on effective leadership, marketing, finance, distribution, public speaking and performance metrics.

UAE-based and international entrepreneurs and industry experts will teach theoretical and practical classes. Mentors include Humaira Ali, director of Intuitive Change, and Padmini Gupta, chief executive of Rise, among others.

The deadline for registration is September 20.

After completing the training, the top participants will get an opportunity to take part in “X Scale”, the accelerator’s second phase, where they will pitch their business plan to investors and entrepreneurs.

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Unresolved crisis

Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter conflict since 2014, when Ukraine’s Kremlin-friendly president was ousted, Moscow annexed Crimea and then backed a separatist insurgency in the east.

Fighting between the Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed more than 14,000 people. In 2015, France and Germany helped broker a peace deal, known as the Minsk agreements, that ended large-scale hostilities but failed to bring a political settlement of the conflict.

The Kremlin has repeatedly accused Kiev of sabotaging the deal, and Ukrainian officials in recent weeks said that implementing it in full would hurt Ukraine.

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%3Cp%3EYe%20%E2%80%94%20the%20rapper%20formerly%20known%20as%20Kanye%20West%20%E2%80%94%20has%20seen%20his%20net%20worth%20fall%20to%20%24400%20million%20in%20recent%20weeks.%20That%E2%80%99s%20a%20precipitous%20drop%20from%20Bloomberg%E2%80%99s%20estimates%20of%20%246.8%20billion%20at%20the%20end%20of%202021.%3Cbr%3EYe%E2%80%99s%20wealth%20plunged%20after%20business%20partners%2C%20including%20Adidas%2C%20severed%20ties%20with%20him%20on%20the%20back%20of%20anti-Semitic%20remarks%20earlier%20this%20year.%3Cbr%3EWest%E2%80%99s%20present%20net%20worth%20derives%20from%20cash%2C%20his%20music%2C%20real%20estate%20and%20a%20stake%20in%20former%20wife%20Kim%20Kardashian%E2%80%99s%20shapewear%20firm%2C%20Skims.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Essentials

The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.

How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
  1. Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
  2. Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
  3. Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
  4. Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
  5. Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
  6. The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
  7. Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269

*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year

The National photo project

Chris Whiteoak, a photographer at The National, spent months taking some of Jacqui Allan's props around the UAE, positioning them perfectly in front of some of the country's most recognisable landmarks. He placed a pirate on Kite Beach, in front of the Burj Al Arab, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland at the Burj Khalifa, and brought one of Allan's snails (Freddie, which represents her grandfather) to the Dubai Frame. In Abu Dhabi, a dinosaur went to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet. And a flamingo was taken all the way to the Hatta Mountains. This special project suitably brings to life the quirky nature of Allan's prop shop (and Allan herself!).

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

match info

Maratha Arabians 138-2

C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15

Team Abu Dhabi 114-3

L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17

Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million