Enterprise Qatar keen to inspire entrepreneurs and SME owners at Qatar Career Fair 2011

Qatar Career Fair 2011 is being held under the patronage of the Heir Apparent His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, from the 10th to 14th of April 2011 at the Doha Exhibitions Centre. QCF 2011 is organized by Qatar Foundation, Qatar Petroleum, the Amiri Diwan, Qatar University and the Ministry of Labour.

Enterprise Qatar was established to realise the vision of His Highness the Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani to be a beacon of excellence for small and medium business owners seeking guidance and a clear roadmap for success. It helps Qataris start, build and grow businesses through an extensive network of partnerships with public and private organizations.

Enterprise Qatar is tasked with providing aspiring entrepreneurs and current small & medium businesses with access to funding for start-up and growth, business support services such as incubation facilities, legal, financial and HR advisory services, access to prospecting databases, export advice, subsidized IT bundles and networking opportunities, training and mentoring they need to be successful.

Enterprise Qatar hopes its participation in QCF will inspire people to consider entrepreneurship and business ownership as a valid career direction, if not now, then in the future.

"Starting, sustaining and growing a small business can be a real challenge for even the most experienced entrepreneur," said Enterprise Qatar Project Director Ms. Noora Al Mannai. "Whatever stage in the business cycle an entrepreneur is at, we aim to be there to provide the support to enable him or her to move their business to the next level... and to keep it moving forward."

Soon Enterprise Qatar, with the support of financial institutions in Qatar, will provide access to a range of funding options and grants to help SMEs start up and grow.

To date, it has launched its innovative SME Evolution Programme for current business owners and Al Fikra, the national Business Plan competition for aspiring entrepreneurs in conjunction with Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar.

Enterprise Qatar partners with Qatar's world-class educational institutions and recognised domain experts to deliver first-class training and development programmes that help entrepreneurs and business owners maximize their potential.

Another major function of Enterprise Qatar is to provide a voice for entrepreneurs and business owners to influence those who create and those who implement the legal and regulatory framework to ensure that it is favourable to SMEs.

The Enterprise Qatar stand is located in the Business & Finance Village of QCF 2011.