SHARJAH, 1st April, 2024 (WAM) — The Board of Directors of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) conducted a performance review of the key initiatives and achievements of the chamber’s branches and subsidiary entities, in line with its operational plan for the first quarter of 2024.
These achievements, which are part of the chamber’s commitment to fostering business growth, bolstering economic activity, and ensuring sustainable performance within the private sector, were unveiled at the SCCI’s eighth regular board meeting recently held at its headquarters.
During the meeting, the board adopted the final communiqués from its meetings last year and received a briefing on the SCCI’s 2023 activities and programmes, alongside the forthcoming events aimed at promoting the chamber’s strategy to support the emirate’s business community.
Abdullah Sultan Al Owais, Chairman of the SCCI, chaired the meeting, which was attended by Sheikh Majid bin Faisal Al Qasimi, First Deputy Chairman of the Chamber, and Walid Abdul Rahman Bukhatir, Second Deputy Chairman of the Chamber.
Also present were Mohammad Ahmed Amin Al Awadi, Director-General of the SCCI, Maryam Saif Al Shamsi, Assistant Director-General for the Support Services Sector at the SCCI, and Abdul Aziz Al Shamsi, Assistant Director-General for the Communication and Business Sector at the SCCI, along with other board members and several officials from the chamber’s affiliated entities.
The SCCI’s board discussed various agenda items, which highlighted the diverse tools and opportunities provided by the chamber to support entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and empower a new cohort of business leaders to help inject fresh momentum into Sharjah’s economy.
Al Owais welcomed the meeting’s attendees and lauded the SCCI’s efforts to create a sustainable economy, diversify export markets, and foster investment. He also affirmed the chamber’s commitment to boosting sustainable economic growth in the emirate, to enable it to achieve global leadership across various sectors.
These efforts solidify the chamber’s contributions to realising the strategic goals of the “We the UAE 2031” Vision, in which businesses and the private sector play key roles, he added.
He then highlighted the SCCI’s growth indicators in 2023, which serve the strategic objectives outlined in its 2022-2024 strategy that aims to support the business sector and promote positive practices towards sustainable economic growth, therefore, enhancing the emirate’s economic competitiveness.
Al Awadi discussed the chamber’s efforts to improve its institutional excellence framework and the standard of services offered to its members, which are the chamber’s leading priorities. The chamber is leveraging the best global practices to facilitate the ongoing collaboration between the private sector and the government as part of their joint commitment to achieving sustainable growth.
The meeting also highlighted the SCCI’s plans to develop various business sectors by capitalising on Sharjah’s many competitive advantages and underscored the importance of maintaining the chamber’s support for local and international exhibitions and facilitating the participation of local exhibitors in regional and international expos.
The SCCI’s board commended the Expo Centre Sharjah (ECS) for adopting a competitive strategy that will help establish Sharjah as a prominent player in the global exhibition industry.
They also talked about the SCCI’s work to ensure the success of the Sharjah Ramadan Festival and the shopping events and festivals it sponsors. Enjoying substantial patronage and turnout from shoppers across the UAE, the festival significantly bolsters the retail sector and supports marketing activities.
The board then reviewed the ongoing arrangements and preparations for the winners’ announcement ceremony honouring the new recipients of the Sharjah Excellence Award, an annual initiative hosted by the chamber to nurture a culture of quality and institutional excellence and embrace best practices within the private sector across the UAE and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
The board’s members discussed the award’s notable breakthroughs in terms of scale and calibre of participation within the Emirati and Gulf business communities, alongside the continuous refinement of the award’s categories to keep pace with international benchmarks and best practices in business excellence.