Thursday 08 / May / 2025
Muscat: Sharakah inked a cooperation agreement on Monday at HSBC Bank Oman’s headquarters to assess and provide support for sustainability to 10 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The agreement was signed by Andrew P Long, CEO of HSBC Bank Oman and Hani Al Zubair, Chairman of Sharakah.
The SME Sustainability Programme falls under HSBC Bank Oman’s focus on entrepreneurship within its Corporate Sustainability Programme (CSR). The programme aims at evaluating the performance and the sustainability plans of the selected SMEs and draw a plan for improvement over a period of six months. An SME start-up, destination sustainability, will partner with Sharakah in assessing the sustainability aspects of the business.
Speaking at the signing ceremony Andrew Long said: “Our partnership with Sharakah underscores HSBC’s strategic commitment to supporting sustainable growth through sustainable finance, entrepreneurship and the development of future skills. Sharakah’s expertise in funding and developing SMEs makes it a powerful partner in HSBC’s work to support SMEs in Oman and we look forward to having a lasting impact on the companies that are part of the programme”
Hani Al Zubair, Chairman at Sharakah further said: “Sharakah is honoured to be associated with HSBC Bank Oman in conducting the SME Sustainability Programme in order to make the SMEs sustainable and ultimately benefit the community. We look forward to a continued joint collaboration for serving the Omani SME community.”
The applications received will be filtered based on specific criteria shared on Sharakah’s website. They include: giving preference to businesses that have completed at least one year since incorporation, the accuracy and authenticity of the information provided about the business, and SME owners to be Omanis and fully dedicated to the project.
