Intilaaqah announces the finalists

Every year, Intilaaqah hold its entrepreneur awards to recognize Omani entrepreneurs who have been running their business successfully for more than 6 months. Early in September the competition was announced through various media channels and the applications were distributed in all Shell Select stores as well as Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry branches across the Sultanate.

More than 50 participants representing different regions in Oman submit their application. The applications went through preliminary screening to select those which were compliant with competition requirements. The five finalists projects were PC maintenance & showroom managed by Saeed Matar, Sanad service center managed by Hamoud Al Hatmi, Aziz Al manthari manager of a stationary store in Ibri, Abdullah Ba Omar selling beauty accessories & frankincense and Abdullah Al Balushi distributor of Nawras services in Shinas and selling mobile phones & mobile phones accessories.

The finalist met this week with the judging panel to discuss their projects. The committee consisted of officials representing various organizations:

Dr. Abdullah Al Sabahi, Chairman, Middle East College of Information Technology

Ms. Malak Al Shaibani, General Manager, Fund for Development of Youth Projects

Ms. Massoam Al Saleh, Director, Association of Early Intervention for Children with Special Needs

Mr. Badar Al Oufi, Director, Economic Research Department, Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry

And

Mr. Saif Al Muzaini, Head, Investigation & Commercial Supplement, Al Shabiba newspaper

The projects were evaluated based on their the clarity of the company’s vision & objective, the competitive advantage of its products or services, market analysis, managerial & administrative skills of the owner, financial study, omanization level and the level of innovation.

Commenting on this said Abdullah Al Jufaili, Director Intilaaqah “Clearly the government has clear vision towards encouraging entrepreneurship in the Sultanate, there are many initiatives that encourage small & startup businesses. Intilaaqah recognize the value of these business owners in the community and works on helping them to sustain in the market.”