Korea-UAE Join Hands to Strengthen SME and Venture Cooperation

The 1st Korea-UAE Small and Venture Business Committee Meeting Held

On the 10th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it held the 1st Korea-UAE SME and Startup Committee at COEX in Seoul with the Ministry of Economy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This is a ministerial-level consultative body in the SME and startup sector established by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the UAE Ministry of Economy, and a memorandum of understanding for its establishment was signed during the UAE president's state visit in May.

The committee was co-chaired by Minister Oh Young-joo of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Alia Mazrui, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, who visited Korea to attend the SME and Startup Committee and COMEUP 2024. Prior to the committee meeting, Minister Oh proposed cooperation in the deep tech sector, a common interest of both countries, and requested the UAE side's interest and participation in the Global Startup Center, which opened this year.

During the subsequent committee meeting, presentations were made on the cooperation achievements and future cooperation plans of both governments, policy introductions and future cooperation plans of representative support organizations from both countries, and success stories of major companies entering each other's markets.

Minister Oh said, “This committee meeting was an opportunity to further strengthen the trust relationship for economic cooperation between Korea and the UAE,” and added, “We will continue to discuss cooperation plans for common goals such as innovation and global market entry of SMEs and startups in both countries by regularly holding the SME and Startup Committee and continuously developing the Korea-UAE SME and startup cooperation model.”