Lim Jeong-wook, Director General for Startup and Venture Innovation at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS), is holding a meeting with tenant companies at the Dubai Export Business Incubator (BI) on the 15th (local time).
SEOUL - South Korea's Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) and the UAE Ministry of Economy announced on the 16th that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on cooperation in the fields of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and innovation. The signing took place at the UAE Presidential Palace on the 15th (local time), coinciding with a summit between the two nations.
This agreement positions South Korea as a key partner in the UAE's "Entrepreneurial Nation 2.0" project, an initiative designed to cultivate startups and unicorn companies to lead the post-oil era.
The "Entrepreneurial Nation 2.0" Initiative
The project aims to establish the UAE as a hub for innovation and entrepreneurship. Its primary goals include:
- Nurturing 8,000 SMEs and startups by 2030.
- Establishing 20 unicorn companies within the UAE by 2030.
- Supporting foreign companies' entry into the UAE market.
"With its extensive experience and policy tools for fostering startups, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups will be the best partner for the UAE in promoting the Entrepreneurial Nation 2.0. Through this cooperation, we will concentrate all our capabilities so that our SMEs and startups can seize opportunities for global growth in the Middle East, a region preparing for the future with its abundant financial resources."
- Lee Young, Minister of SMEs and Startups
In a related effort, on the 14th (local time), the MSS also signed an MOU with Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI), the official media channel of the Dubai government, to promote the local market entry of Korean content and consumer goods companies. This agreement aims to create new overseas sales channels and marketing tools for SMEs and startups facing challenges from complex crises. To facilitate active cooperation between DMI and Korean companies, the MSS is planning to hold an export business fair in Dubai in the first half of the year.
Furthermore, on the 15th, the MSS held a meeting with tenant companies at the Dubai Export Business Incubator (BI) to reflect the vivid voices of the export field in its policies. The participating companies requested an expansion of future support programs.
