(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Mohammad Shoeb & Mohamad Bawary / The Peninsula
Qatar Development Bank (QDB) extended a financial support of about QR8bn in 2018 to Qatari companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
QDB, the state-backed entity, noted that it is committed to promoting economic diversification by establishing a cluster of vibrant private sector industries as part of the country's long term objective to achieve sustainable development.
'The Qatar Development Bank funding in 2018 reached QR8bn to support various projects. Nearly 80 percent of the funding was to support industries directly, and the remaining 20 percent went to projects in other areas such as education, health, tourism and other sectors such as fisheries and livestock, Hamad Salim Mejegheer, Manager of Marketing and Communications, told Qatar TV in an interview.
In the interview, which is doing rounds in the social media, Mejegheer added: 'The year 2018 was full of initiatives and programmes. Many of them were launched in the same year, while some of them complemented the programmes that were launched earlier in previous years. The funding for this year (2018) was an extension of previous years, which became possible as a result of team effort.
QDB, as part of its industrial diversification efforts, has been actively providing all kinds of possible support to local firms, especially SMEs, micro-enterprises and other home-based manufacturers for several years.
However, after the Arab quartet led by Saudi Arabia, abruptly severed ties and imposed an economic blockade on Qatar in early June 2017, QDB accelerated its activities and coordination with other private and government agencies, including various ministries, to collective achieve self-sufficiency in several products to allay dependence on imports.
In addition to extending financial assistance, providing incubation facilities, and all other kinds of possible support to local enterprises and startups, QDB was at the forefront of organising and participating in several exhibitions, conference, and other activities, in Qatar and overseas throughout the year.
Some of the popular financial products of QDB include Al Dhameen (credit guarantee programme), Istithmar (SME Equity), Ithmar (Seed Funding), Green House Financing, Export Finance, Export Insurance, Direct Lending.
QDB also offers several types of advisory services such as Jadwa (Feasibility Study), Tadqeeq (Accounting Services), Marketing & PR services, Incubationfacilities, SME Excellence, Franchise, Qatar Exchange Venture Market among others.
In addition, QDB also offers services related to marketing, legal services, market access, and others such as Oqood (legal services), Eyada (SME support services), Tasdeer (export promotion and development programme), SME Rating & Accreditation, Capability Development, Tasdeer Promotion business opportunity identification.
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