2009 Intilaaqah Best Young Entrepreneur Honored!
Under the patronage of HE Dr. Rajha bint Abdul Ameer, Minister of Tourism, entrepreneurs and representatives of various public and private sector organizations gathered last night to celebrate and honor three entrepreneurial projects during the 6th Intilaaqah best Young Entrepreneur Awards, a nation wide event that recognizes the success of young entrepreneurs and promotes nurturing an entrepreneurial culture
Hamed Al Aghbary of Muscat Geo Systems, winners of this year awards commented after receiving the awards (We have worked hard to receive this recognition and we are delighted that we made it to the top. Muscat Geo Systems is a company based in the TKM business incubator program in Knowledge Oasis Muscat. Our business officially started in 2008 offering Geographic Information Systems (GIS) solution to individuals, corporate and public sector organizations)
His colleague and business partner Musallam Al Rahbi added (Being recognized in Intilaaqah nation wide best young entrepreneur award is a key milestone in our business plan. Indeed this will encourage us to put more effort in our business and grow it further. The support we have received from the organizers coupled with the advice we have received from the judging panel members is very much appreciated)
Speaking at the Award Ceremony, John Blascos, GM Shell Development Oman and Shell Country Chairmen said (On an annual basis we gather to celebrate the success of young entrepreneurs. The Intilaaqah Awards that has started off as an initiative to recognize successful young Omani entrepreneurs has evolved to be a credible source to identify leading small and medium enterprises. This was clearly visible from the competition we have witnessed between the finalists this year.)
Intilaaqah Best Young Entrepreneur Awards is an annual event organized by Intilaaqah, one of Shell social investment programs in Oman. It is also supported by Omantel, Oman Mobile, DHL, United Press & Publishing and The Fund for Development of Youth Projects.
(We are delighted to have partnered with Intilaaqah in this prestigious award. At the Fund for Development of Youth Projects, we always seek to be present in events related to entrepreneurial development. Certainly, young entrepreneurs need to be acknowledged to encourage them and others to take on the same path.) Commented Hani Al Zubair, Chairman, The Fund for Development of Youth Projects
Over 50 entrepreneurs competed for this year awards. The finalists were selected based on their business portfolio, financial planning, marketing strategy, leadership skills of the entrepreneurs and innovation level.
During the ceremony, Abdullah AL Jufaili, Director, Intilaaqah presented an overview of Intilaaqah major highlights since its launch in 1995. He explained (Our achievements is largely contributed to our partners namely Bank Muscat, Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Oman International Bank, Sohar Aluminum, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman Air, Knowledge Oasis Muscat and Sanad Program. Apart from the awards, this year we launched a nationwide campaign with the Ministry of Education to create more awareness in schools about entrepreneurship. We aim to maintain a leadership position amongst organizations that support the development of entrepreneurs.)
