Sheraa’s business-driven ecosystem reshapes Sharjah into innovation hub

Sheraa’s business-driven ecosystem reshapes Sharjah into innovation hub

Emphasising the formative role of entrepreneurship in building and sustaining competitive economies, the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa) has consistently fostered innovation and growth opportunities for its thriving community of entrepreneurs, through a series of programmes, initiatives and collaborations, including the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival (SEF). Commenting on the entity’s supportive ecosystem and world-class opportunities, Sheraa beneficiary, Siddiq Farid, Co-Founder, Smart Crowd, MENA’s first regulated digital real estate platform, said: “Our participation in the debut edition of SEF in 2017 provided our business with validation and exposure that attracted the attention of VC’s and potential partners. Sheraa’s $100,000 grant, as well as the programmes we participated in, is what has made our entrepreneurship journey possible.” More than 17,800 founders and ecosystem players have attained similar benefits through their participation in Sheraa events delivering the know-how integral to sustained entrepreneurial success. Since inception, Sheraa has provided more than 3,000+ hours of mentoring in collaboration with diverse ecosystem stakeholders. Accordingly, Sheraa has connected entrepreneurs to investors and customers for guidance and resources to commercialise ideas, accelerate growth and compete internationally. Describing Sheraa’s incredible reputation for shaping top-notch entrepreneurs, Amna Al Jarwan, Founder of the digital coaching enterprise solutions venture, KnackLab, says: “Sheraa’s founder-first approach