ABU DHABI // The Khalifa Innovation Centre was opened on Wednesday to support innovative projects across the country.
Established by the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development, Khalifa University, Tawazun Economic Council and Mubadala Development Company, the centre will operate over the next five years by offering financial and technical support to almost 130 projects, each of which is expected to receive up to Dh300,000.
“The initiative will bridge the gap between innovation in technology and establishing ventures,” said Homaid Al Shemmari, chief executive of aerospace and engineering services at Mubadala. “It is of the utmost importance that we see industrial ideas capable of becoming commercial ventures and the centre was created for this purpose. It will also strengthen our efforts in research.”
Around Dh200 million will be invested in the centre over the next five years. It is expected to support no less than 1,000 innovative Emiratis.
Hussein Al Nowais, chairman of the Khalifa Fund, said another package of support would be provided to transform practical ideas into projects within incubators in the centre. “This would include financial support of up to Dh1 million for ten projects annually,” he said. “I expect the centre to help supply the national economy with a number of projects with value-added.”
Saif Al Hajiri, chief executive of Tawazun Economic Council, said: “Establishing the centre is an important step towards creating an integrated system to facilitate and support the preservation of ideas and innovative projects.”
*This article has been amended due to incorrect information supplied.
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