Emirati entrepreneur heads up community-led TEDx talks in Abu Dhabi

Sindiya Ibrahim is keen to take inspirational ideas from Abu Dhabi across the globe

Sindiya Ibrahim has curated TEDxAlBateen to bring together leaders in government, business and culture to share ideas. Photo: TEDxAlBateen

An Emirati entrepreneur is keen to spark change in people’s mindsets so they can flourish in business and give back to the community.

Sindiya Ibrahim has curated TEDxAlBateen, which on Saturday will bring together government officials, heads of business and cultural trusts speaking on topics including heritage and emerging technologies that connect people.

Inspired by the TED international non-profit group, local TEDx events are independently organised to share ideas and encourage deep discussion.

This year's talks – under the title Threads of Us – will take place at the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, close to the coastal district of Al Bateen, from 9am to 5pm.

Ms Ibrahim plans to run a series of TEDx talks in different Abu Dhabi neighbourhoods every year.

“We were humbled by the response we received,” she said. “TEDx talks … showcase ideas that people may not know about and give people things to think about.

“This is completely a community-led initiative. We are giving our time because we want this for the community. We also want the voices of Abu Dhabi to be showcased to the rest of the world.”

Pushing past limits

As section head of entrepreneurs' support at the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, Ms Ibrahim has doubled its reach, forged partnerships and transformed the growth of small and medium enterprises in only one year.

She was also named a women’s empowerment fellow by the United Nations Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens and has won the Sharjah Economic Excellence award for building a business listing for the UAE’s eastern coast.

Supporting entrepreneurs and young people is central to her aim of helping companies collaborate.

Companies can collaborate to grow the business and also give back to the community in the UAE. Ali Al Shouk / The National

“Businesses in the UAE oftentimes reach a certain threshold and cannot cross that. What we're trying to do here with my work is to get them to surpass that threshold,” she said.

“So if they are making Dh2 million, next year we want them to make Dh5 million and the year after Dh10 million. We do a lot of matchmaking, we connect businesses and get them to continue to collaborate.”

Ms Ibrahim is also the author of Tales of an Emirati Entrepreneur, a guide to transforming ideas into enterprises.

“It was very important for me to make sure that the book worked,” she said. She said it had altered the lives of at least five people and enabled them “to take that first step in the entrepreneurship journey”.

“Within three to eight months, all of them were able to start their business using this manual.”

Ms Ibrahim's message to entrepreneurs is simple: understand how to address gaps in the market.

“It doesn't necessarily have to be a unique idea,” she said. “It just has to be an idea that fills that gap in the supply chain. It's about being able to understand what is needed in the world, for you to fulfil that gap and profit from it as well.”

Her learning is that people cannot work in silos.

“It's also important for me that we connect profit and the community together, give back to the community,” she said. “People should do something good for society, the community. You can't really do that alone.”